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Full-Text Articles in Kinesiology

Metabolic Cost Of Asymmetrical Walking: Preferred Step Time Asymmetry Optimizes Metabolic Cost Of Walking, Jan Stenum Oct 2019

Metabolic Cost Of Asymmetrical Walking: Preferred Step Time Asymmetry Optimizes Metabolic Cost Of Walking, Jan Stenum

Doctoral Dissertations

Hemiparetic and amputee walking often has asymmetrical step lengths and step times, and it is metabolically costlier than symmetrical able-bodied walking. Consequently, asymmetry has been suggested to account for the greater energy expenditure, but the metabolic cost of asymmetrical walking is poorly understood. Conversely, even though symmetry is metabolically optimal in able-bodied walking, it is also possible that asymmetrical gait parameters may be selected if they are optimal under imposed constraints. First, to understand the metabolic cost of asymmetry, we performed experiment 1 in which we recruited 10 able-bodied subjects to walk with a range of different combinations of asymmetrical …


Mechanisms That Limit Oxidative Phosphorylation During High-Intensity Muscle Contractions In Vivo, Miles F. Bartlett Oct 2019

Mechanisms That Limit Oxidative Phosphorylation During High-Intensity Muscle Contractions In Vivo, Miles F. Bartlett

Doctoral Dissertations

Skeletal muscle oxidative capacity plays a critical role in human health and disease. Although current models of oxidative phosphorylation sufficiently describe skeletal muscle energetics during moderate-intensity contractions, much is still unknown about the mechanisms that control and limit oxidative phosphorylation during high-intensity contractions. In particular, the oxygen cost of force generation is augmented during exercise at workloads above the lactate threshold. Presently, it is unclear whether this augmentation in muscle oxygen consumption is driven by increased rates of oxidative ATP synthesis (ATPOX) or by decreases in the efficiency of ATPOX due to mitochondrial uncoupling. To address this …


The Roles Of Morphology And Posture On Gait Mechanics, Russell T. Johnson Oct 2019

The Roles Of Morphology And Posture On Gait Mechanics, Russell T. Johnson

Doctoral Dissertations

Humans walk with an upright posture, extended limbs during stance, and a double-peaked vertical ground reaction force. Our closest living relatives, chimpanzees, sometimes walk bipedally but do so with a flexed, abducted hind limb. Previous researchers have studied humans walking with a crouched, chimpanzee-like gait pattern to try to infer how extinct human ancestors walked. However, it is not clear if the way humans perform this crouched posture gait would be similar to the way a species that is adapted to walk with a crouched posture would walk. The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate the impact of morphology …


Sleep-Dependent Consolidation Of Locomotor Sequence Learning And Locomotor Adaptation, Gabriela Borin Castillo Jul 2019

Sleep-Dependent Consolidation Of Locomotor Sequence Learning And Locomotor Adaptation, Gabriela Borin Castillo

Doctoral Dissertations

Walking is a complex task that requires precise coordination of many muscles and joints. The nervous system must continually learn how to control gait patterns as changes occur to the body (e.g., injury and fatigue) or environment (e.g., slippery floor). Motor learning refers to processes that improve the spatial and/or temporal accuracy of a movement through motor practice. Although additional hours of practice can improve motor skill performance (online learning), time without additional practice (offline learning) can further enhance motor learning. Consolidation refers to the process by which motor (procedural) memory becomes more robust and stable after the end of …


Walking For Object Transport: An Examination Of The Coordinative Adaptations To Locomotor, Perceptual, And Manual Task Constraints, Avelino Amado Jul 2019

Walking For Object Transport: An Examination Of The Coordinative Adaptations To Locomotor, Perceptual, And Manual Task Constraints, Avelino Amado

Doctoral Dissertations

The goal of this dissertation was to understand how the intrinsic dynamics of gait adapt to support the performance of an ecologically relevant object transport task. A common object transport task is walking with a cup of water. Because the water can move relatively independent of the cup, the cup and water system is classified as a complex object. To model this task participants carried a cup with a wooden lid placed on top. On the lid there was a circular region with the same circumference as the cup and a ball. The object of the task was to keep …


Feasibility, Acceptability, And Preliminary Efficacy Of An Academically-Integrated Physical Activity Program On Classroom Behavior In Preschoolers, Sarah Burkart Jul 2019

Feasibility, Acceptability, And Preliminary Efficacy Of An Academically-Integrated Physical Activity Program On Classroom Behavior In Preschoolers, Sarah Burkart

Doctoral Dissertations

Maladaptive classroom behaviors (i.e., hyperactivity, inattention) are common in preschoolers, yet elevated levels may lead to future academic difficulties or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Physical activity (PA) may be one way to alleviate these maladaptive behaviors within the classroom, yet preschoolers are not meeting PA guidelines. Implementing academically-integrated PA may serve a two-fold benefit of enhancing PA and classroom behavior. However, process evaluation data describing academically-integrated PA interventions are sparse. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a 12-week PA intervention integrated into early learning standards on classroom behavior in preschoolers. Two …


Metabolic Cost And Stability Of Locomotion In People With Lower Limb Amputation, Ryan Wedge Jul 2019

Metabolic Cost And Stability Of Locomotion In People With Lower Limb Amputation, Ryan Wedge

Doctoral Dissertations

It is generally accepted that metabolic energy expenditure and gait stability are key factors that influence the selection of able-bodied locomotor patterns. It is unclear how energy expenditure and gait stability are prioritized during walking in people with lower limb amputation. People with lower limb amputation generally have greater metabolic energy expenditure during walking and increased incidence of falls. People with unilateral lower limb amputation spend more time on the intact limb compared with the prosthetic limb, while able-bodied individuals generally walk with symmetrical timing between limbs. Restoring symmetry is often a goal of rehabilitation and assistive devices, yet the …


Feasibility And Efficacy Of A Recess-Based Combined Fitness Intervention On Cognition And Academic Performance In Elementary School Children, Christine St Laurent Jul 2019

Feasibility And Efficacy Of A Recess-Based Combined Fitness Intervention On Cognition And Academic Performance In Elementary School Children, Christine St Laurent

Doctoral Dissertations

Youth physical activity and fitness have been reported to influence cognition and academic related outcomes. Despite the potential benefits of muscular fitness, few intervention studies have examined the impact of an intervention that has incorporated both cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness training on cognition and academic performance in children. Previous studies have mainly been implemented either during the school day or immediately after-school. Although recess may be an ideal time to promote physical activity because it does not compete with other academic demands, it has been an understudied setting. Therefore, the purpose of this dissertation project was to examine the feasibility, …


Changes In Muscle Control And Coordination In Novel Task Learning, Sangsoo Park Mar 2019

Changes In Muscle Control And Coordination In Novel Task Learning, Sangsoo Park

Doctoral Dissertations

Learning many daily life motor skills is critical for survival and the quality of living in humans. As children, we develop walking and running patterns to move the body from point A to B without falling, and we learn to grasp a wide variety of objects during activities of daily living. Motor skills can be properly performed by appropriate muscle activations which are controlled by the central nervous system. How does the central nervous system develop and fine-tune its control strategy to learn a new motor skill? The aim of this dissertation was to better understand how human participants alter …