Metabolic Cost in Healthy Fit Older Adults and Young Adults During Overground and Treadmill Walking

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine whether net metabolic cost of walking is affected by age per se.

Methods: We selected 10 healthy, active older adults (mean age 75 years) and 10 young adults (mean age 26 years), and determined their preferred overground walking speed. On the same day, in a morning and afternoon session, we had them walk at that speed overground and on a treadmill while we measured oxygen consumption rate. From the latter we subtracted the rate in sitting and calculated net metabolic cost.

Results: Anthropometrics were not different between the groups nor was preferred walking speed (1.27 m s both groups). There was no difference in net metabolic cost of overground walking between older and young adults (e.g., in the morning 2.64 and 2.56 J kg m, respectively, p > 0.05). In the morning session, net metabolic cost of walking was higher on the treadmill than overground in our older adults by 0.6 J kg m (p < 0.05), but not in young adults.

Conclusion: First, there is no effect of age per se on metabolic cost of overground walking. Second, older adults tend to have higher metabolic cost of walking on a treadmill than walking overground at preferred speed, and adaptation may take a long time. The commonly reported age-related elevation of metabolic cost of walking may be due to confounding factors causing preferred walking speed to be lower in older adults, and/or due to older adults reacting differently to treadmill walking than young adults.