Study Design: Single-group repeated-measures design. Objectives: To compare the effects of forward walking (FW) and backward walking (BW) on heart rate (HR) and oxygen consumption (VO 2 ) at treadmill grades of 5%, 7.5%, and 10%. Background: Previous studies of locomotion by humans on a treadmill have reported larger cardiovascular exertion and potential biomechanical benefits of BW as compared to FW for treadmill grades ranging from 0% to 5%. The present study extends these findings by examining the cardiovascular effects of BW and FW at treadmill grades greater than 5%. Methods and Measures: Twenty-nine volunteers participated in this study. Two subjects were excluded, leaving 27 study subjects (15 females, 12 males; mean age ± SD, 24.0 ± 3.4 years). VO 2 and HR were measured using open-circuit calorimetry and electrocardiogram, respectively. For both forward and backward walking, subjects performed each of the 3 grades for 6 minutes, during which HR and VO 2 were measured. Two-way repeated-measures ANOVAs were employed for inferential statistical analysis. Results: Percent maximum heart rate (HR max ) and percent maximum oxygen consumption (VO 2max ) increased incrementally for treadmill grades of 5% to 7.5% to 10% for both FW and BW (PϽ.00001). For each of the 3 treadmill grades, percent HR max and percent VO 2max was 17% to 20% higher for BW than for FW (PϽ.00001). No statistically significant interactions were detected between direction of walking and treadmill grade. Conclusions: Backward walking on a treadmill at 67.0 m/min (2.5 mph) and grades of 5%, 7.5%, and 10% elicits a greater percent HR max and percent VO 2max than does forward walking under the same conditions and, if incorporated into sustained training regimens, would be expected to improve aerobic endurance. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2004;34:65-71.
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