Time course of training effects on balancing on one foot.

Abstract

The remarkable balancing skills of steeplejacks, tight-rope artists and gymnasts indicate that congenital postural reflexes are not optimized under daily life conditions but must be adjusted by training. The time constants of both the development of a short- and long-term training effect as well as its duration after termination of training are of particular interest for sports physiologists and clinicians. The time course of training effects on experimental postural instability when standing on one foot was investigated in healthy subjects in order to obtain a reliable clinical measure for control and expectation of the overall benefit of physical therapy in ataxic patients. A total of 28 healthy subjects (20 students and 8 gymnasts; 8 males, 20 females) ranging between 17 and 33 years of age (mean 24 years) were employed in three series of experiments. The fore-aft and lateral body sway at free stance on one foot were measured separately by means of a stabilometer platform which transduces force moments exerted on foot support. The root mean square values analysed for 30-sec segments were selected