Abstract
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of backward walking using a sheet-type gait analysis system in healthy adults. The subjects consisted of 23 healthy college students (13 males and 10 females). They walked forward and backward twice each on the sheet of the gait analysis system. As a result, during backward walking, the left and right stance duration and step length significantly increased, and the walking speed and stride significantly decreased. There was a significant correlation between the left and right stance duration and walking speed. These results suggested that the walking speed reduces with a decrease in stride during backward walking, and walking is stabilized by increasing the step length. Subjects with a higher walking ability could walk while maintaining a more stable posture even during backward walking.
