Used as part of physical therapy, walking backwards increases fitness

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KUWAIT CITY, Nov 7: If you walk into any gym, you might find someone walking backwards on a treadmill. While some may use inversions as part of their physical therapy regimen, others may do so to enhance their fitness and overall health.

“I think it’s great to add some movement back into your day,” said Grayson Wickham, a physical therapist at Lux Center for Physical Therapy and Occupational Medicine in New York City.

Quite a number of studies have been conducted on the potential benefits of walking backwards. For the participants who walked backwards on the treadmill for 30 minutes each time over a period of four weeks, they increased their balance, walking speed, and cardiopulmonary fitness, according to a study conducted in March 2021, according to what was covered by the “CNN” website.

In addition, a group of women were able to reduce their body fat percentage and enhance cardiorespiratory fitness after undergoing a six-week program of running and walking backwards, according to a clinical trial whose results were published in the April 2005 issue of the International Journal of Sports Medicine.

Other studies have indicated that backward movement may help people with knee arthritis and chronic back pain, in addition to improving walking quality and balance.

Walking in the opposite direction may sharpen your mind and help you become more aware, as your mind needs to be more alert when moving in this new way. For this reason, in addition to the fact that moving backwards helps with balance, older adults may particularly benefit from incorporating some backward walking into their daily routine, according to one 2021 study of patients with chronic stroke.

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