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THE EFFECT OF BACKPACK WEIGHT ON STATIC STABILITY IN RECREATIONAL BACKPACKERS

Abstract

S. Paulson; K. Wiegand

Eastern Washington University, Cheney, WA

Backpacking, the practice of carrying survival essentials in a pack for multi-day hikes, is gaining popularity. Not only is the activity physically demanding, but navigating uneven terrain requires appropriate baseline stability before a hiker sets foot on a trail. Surprisingly, there is limited research analyzing the effects of greater pack weights on baseline stability measures in a recreational population. PURPOSE: To determine how different weighted conditions of a backpack (0%, 15%, 30% body mass) affect eyes-open and eyes-closed single-leg static stability of healthy adult recreational backpackers. METHODS: Eight of 30 participants have completed the study thus far (4 male, 4 female, age 22.4 ± 3.5 years). Participants completed two single-leg balance trials for each limb with three weighted conditions: 0%, 15%, and 30% of body mass, calculated to the nearest 50 grams. For weighted conditions the weight was distributed throughout the backpack to mimic field conditions. Eyes open (EO) and eyes closed (EC) single-leg static stability was assessed with 15-second trials on a force platform. Sway velocity was calculated for each trial in degrees/second. A three-way repeated measures ANOVA assessed the effects of weight, vision, and limb on sway velocity (α = .05). RESULTS: Mean velocity values for each condition are depicted in Figure 1. Preliminary results indicate no significant interactions among variables (p < .05). CONCLUSION: Despite non-significant interactions, preliminary analyses of simple main effects indicate that overall stability was greater in the EO condition than the EC condition. Continued data collection is necessary to draw conclusions regarding backpack weight effects.

Additional Files
Figure 1.docx (16 kB)
Figure 1

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