The parameters that we scored were the ability to take a hind limb step, and the percentage of hind limb steps that occurred within a normal stepping cycle with the rationale of providing a simple measure of stepping frequency and strength (the stepping score) and of ascending and descending input (the coordination score).
In addition, participants will wear a pedometer for seven days at the three measurements time points to obtain a quantitative measure of steps per day.
Other studies using ground-reaction forces measured on a force platform or other physical measurement would probably be more comparable to our z-value measure of stepping [21], [22], therefore giving us the novel opportunity to bridge between the two experimental conditions.
This measure of steps can be seen as a temporal variable.
The activPAL is a small device (5 × 3 cm) containing a uni-axal accelerometer which provides a valid and reliable measure of steps taken, cadence and time spent lying/sitting, standing and stepping under free-living conditions.
GAITRite measures of step lengths and times were reliable in both walkway center and left-of-center measurements.
The measures of step length (SL), step width (SW), step time (ST), gait speed, double support time (DS) and their variability were assessed for agreement between the two systems; absolute error and intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) were determined.
We correlated different measures of step accumulation to body size, overall physical activity level, and glucose regulation.
The difference between both measures of step counts was plotted against the mean of both measures.
Parameters assessed include the speed of walking, spatial and temporal measures of step cycles (distances between pawprints, stance time, swing time and so on), the pressure and area of the pawprints and rotation in the respective limb [ 3- 8].
