The effect of evenly distributed load carrying on lower body gait dynamics for normal weight and overweight subjects

The carrying of extra weight can cause significant injuries. This extra weight can be in the form of an external load carried by an individual or excessive body weight carried by an overweight individual. This study attempts to define the differences in lower body gait patterns caused by either external load carriage, excessive body weight, or a combination of both. Twenty-three subjects generated 115 trials of motion capture data for each loading condition. Path lengths of the phase portrait and the ranges of joint motions (hip, knee and ankle) were used to quantify subgroup differences. The study found significant gait differences due to external load carriage and excessive body weight. Within each class of normal weight and overweight subjects, differences were found in the hip and ankle path lengths when a subject carried an evenly distributed external load. This implies that these joints may be more prone to injury due to external load carriage.