2026-05-07T13:56:48Zhttps://riubu.ubu.es/oai/request

oai:riubu.ubu.es:10259/112132026-01-14T01:05:43Zcom_10259.4_2551com_10259_5086com_10259_2604col_10259.4_2552

Zorrilla Revilla, Guillermo Volpe, Stella L. Prado‐Nóvoa, Olalla Howard, Kristen R. Laskaridou, Eleni Marinik, Elaina L. Ramadoss, Rohit Davy, Kevin P. García González, Rebeca 2026-01-13T13:38:41Z 2026-01-13T13:38:41Z 2024-07 1042-0533 https://hdl.handle.net/10259/11213 10.1002/ajhb.24138 1520-6300 Introduction: Locomotion activities are part of most human daily tasks and are the basis for subsistence activities, particularly for hunter–gatherers. Therefore, differences in speed walking-related variables may have an effect, not only on the mobility of the group, but also on its composition. Some anthropometric parameters related to body length could affect walking speed-related variables and contribute to different human behaviors. However, there is currently little information on the influence of these parameters in nonadult individuals. Methods: Overall, 11 females and 17 male child/adolescents, 8–17 years of age, volunteered to participate in this cross-sectional study. Five different pace walking tests were performed on a treadmill to calculate the optimal locomotion speed (OLS) and U-shaped relationship between the walking energy expenditure and speed (χ2 cost of transport [CoT]) (i.e., energetic walking flexibility). Results: The mean OLS was 3.05 ± 0.13 miles per hour (mph), with no differences between sexes. Similarly, there were no sex differences in walking flexibility according to the χ2 CoT. Body height (p < .0001) and femur length (p < .001) were positively correlated with χ2 CoT; however, female child/adolescents mitigated the effect of height and femur length when walking at suboptimal speeds. Conclusion: Consistent with prior observations in adults, our findings suggest that anthropometric parameters related to body stature are associated with reduced suboptimal walking flexibility in children and adolescents. Taken together, these results suggest that children and adolescents can adapt their pace to the one of taller individuals without a highly energetic penalty, but this flexibility decreases with increasing body size. Margarita Salas Postdoctoral; SpanishMinistry of Universities and the EuropeanUnion—Next Generation EU; VirginiaTech Presidential Postdoctoral Fellowship;Virginia Tech Translational ObesityResearch Interdisciplinary GraduateEducation Predoctoral Fellowship;Virginia Tech Human Nutrition Foodsand Exercise Postdoctoral Fellowship application/pdf eng Wiley American Journal of Human Biology. 2024, V. 36, n. 10, p. e24138 https://doi.org/10.1002/ajhb.24138Digital Object Identifier (DOI) Atribución-NoComercial 4.0 Internacional http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Fisiología humana Locomoción Biomecánica Human physiology Human locomotion Human mechanics Far from the walking pace. Ecological and evolutionary consequences of the suboptimal locomotion speeds in non‐adult humans info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion American Journal of Human Biology 36 10 e24138