Gait is determined by the way you walk and the peculiarities that might interfere with a balanced, safe and healthy walk. According to the Braintree Rehabilitation Hospital, gait includes the characteristics of your walk, such as how fast and hard you walk, your posture, length of your strides, specific cadence and the evenness of each leg while walking. Following surgery or an injury, you may require gait training to help you walk properly. A treadmill is a tool often used by physical therapists to help with rehabilitative walking programs.
Features
Gait training often requires the use of a harness that the physical therapists can hang on to while you walk, according to the "Journal of the American Physical Therapy Association." By utilizing the stationary equipment of a treadmill, the therapist easily can hold on to you while you walk without fear of falling. Variations in walking technique can be suggested and tried with the stability offered by the harness.
Variables
In addition to various paces, stride lengths and arm rotations, the therapy can include other rehabilitative techniques to increase gait performance. According to the "Journal of the American Physical Therapy Association," patients undergoing electrical stimulation in addition to the treadmill gait training were more likely to improve in a shorter period of time than those who relied strictly on the treadmill therapy.
Functions
Gait training usually is provided in addition to other mobility therapies following an illness or injury. According to the Woodrow Wilson Rehabilitation Center, mobility training may be required for patients who have had a stroke, brain or spinal cord injury. People with chronic mobility conditions also can improve gait function with treadmill training. The therapy can help patients with cerebral palsy, arthritis, muscular dystrophy and multiple sclerosis.
Benefits
In addition to providing a stable platform on which therapists can remain close to the patient, treadmills have other benefits related to gait training. According to the Woodrow Wilson Rehabilitation Center, the handles found on most treadmills allow patients to walk by partially holding themselves up. A harness that lifts the patient from the treadmill can be moved over the equipment to provide additional pressure relief while the therapy continues. The harness can be adjusted to allow more weight bearing as you gain strength and improve your gait.
Effects
Treadmill therapy also affects other areas of the body in addition to the way you walk. According to Kernan Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, the effects of treadmill training when relearning proper gait form also include strength building, cardio endurance and increased walking speed. Treadmills are safer than walking freely in the therapeutic setting and long distances can be covered without leaving the physical therapy office.
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