Abstract
[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to investigate the EMG patterns and the integrated EMG of forward walking and backward walking at four different walking speeds. [Subjects] Twelve healthy subjects with a mean age of 21.8 years participated in this study. [Method] The surface EMGs of eight muscles (gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, biceps femoris, rectus femoris, vastus medialis, gastrocnemius of lateral head, tibialis anterior, and soleus) were measured at walking speeds of 20 m/min, 40 m/min, 60 m/min, and 80 m/min. [Result] There was no similarity of the EMG pattern of forward walking and backward walking in any muscle at any speed. The amount of muscle activity in backward walking was bigger than that of forward walking in many muscles. In addition, the integrated EMG increased with an increase in walking speed regardless of the style walking. [Conclusion] The EMG pattern of backward walking is different from forward walking. Regardless of the walking style, and increase in walking speed increases the integrated EMG.
