Gait. Gait. Gait. Damn it, Gait.

[ninevirtues]

"These eight events divide the gait cycle into seven periods...terminal stance begins when the heel rises and ends when the contralateral lower extremity touches the ground, from 30 to 50% of gait cycle. Pre swing takes place from foot contact of the contralateral limb to toe off on the ipsilateral foot, which is the time corresponding to the seconds double-limb support period of the gait cycle (50 to 60% of gait cycle). Initial swing is from toe off to feet adjacent, when the foot of the swing leg is next to the foot of the stance leg (60 to 73% of gait cycle)."

That noise is my head, slamming repeatedly on my desk, or slamming repeatedly into this idea, I'm not sure which. Smart I am not, and I am not smart, and today I can't find smart even if you give me a roll of quarters and a map.

Argh. Food now. Then back to the gait cycle. Ugggggggh. Okay it's official and I'm having one of those moments: Why did I EVER think this was a good idea?

Comments

[browse.livejournal.com]

Ooof, thick with the anatomy lingo, ain't it?

But I think I'm sorta kinda following what is being described. Can I try to repeat it back in simple terms, and you can tell me what I've missed?

Okay, phase one.
Starts when the heel os one foot (let's say the right, for simplicity) rises that first tiny bit, and ends when the left foot touches the ground. (This only makes sense to me when i think about a person mid-stride. It doesn't work when i think about someone first starting off.)

Phase two, called "pre-swing", I think.
Starts where phase one left off, when the left foot touches the ground, and ends when the toe of the right foot leaves the ground. This is the portion of the gait where both feet are touching.

Phase three, called "initial swing"
Again, picks up where the last phase left off, with the right toe leaving the ground. Ends when the two legs are side by side. I imagine this means the right hip is elevated, so the foot can swing clear of the ground, and the entire body weight is on the left leg.

What I'm not following is the percentage of gait stuff described. Seems like if I add all the percentages you've listed, I get over 100%. Huh? Can you clue me in?

well...

[ninevirtues.livejournal.com]

Hmm, I think so. If you replace "ipsilateral" with it's god-given meaning "same side" and "contralateral" with "other side" you get pretty far. There are several different ways to describe it, though, which is what's giving me fits.

Here are the events in the gait cycle.... and the percent is the percent of the way through the gait cycle that you are.... it really helps me to explain this... thanks for your patience and help!

Initial contact (heel strike) to opposite toe off is the first 10%. This is called loading response, as the reference foot takes weight.

Mid stance is 10 to 30% of the gait cycle, and it goes from opposite toe off to opposite foot heel rise. (Hmm, the STANCE foot's phase is defined by what the SWING foot, which technically we are not interested in, is doing.)

Terminal stance goes from 30% to 50% of the gait cycle, and during it, the swing foot passes the reference foot (stance foot) and makes contact with the ground

Pre swing goes from opposite foot heelstrike to reference foot toe off (50 to 60% of gait cycle)... during the loading response of the non-interesting foot.

Initial swing goes from 60 to 73% of the gait cycle, and in it the reference foot goes from toe off to feet adjacent.

Mid swing goes from 73% to 87% of the gait cycle, and in it the reference foot goes from feet adjacent to tibia vertical.

Terminal swing goes from 87% to 100% of gait cycle (honestly, where DO they get these numbers?) and in it, the reference foot goes from tibia vertical to heelstrike.