OUTSIDE: Take It Back

Every once in a while you encounter someone doing something unusual on asphalt.

No, that is not a Beatles reference. Instead, it’s a man who strolls backward through his Pacific Grove neighborhood. Or another who regularly takes on the harrowing incline of McClellan Avenue in Monterey, again powering backward up the slope. Some are taking to walking the wrong way around.

It turns out that walking backward has some serious benefits for the body and mind, at least according to medical experts – who use “locomotion” in place of the pedestrian term, and “lower extremity kinematic pattern” to mean muscle use. Research published in the journal Cognition, for instance, found that walking in reverse (or even imagining the process) strengthened memory. Other reports mention improvements in coordination and cognitive abilities.

The physical benefits of at least adding it to the exercise routine include releasing impact and strain on the lower back, working different leg muscles and – because studies claim walking backward tests the body more than the normal stride – burning more calories. A team at the University of Oregon employs “retro walking” as a way for athletes to rehab from injury.

One suggested exercise is to walk forward five steps, balance on one leg for several seconds, head backward four steps and balance on the other leg then repeat many times. You won’t get far, but you also won’t have to check over your shoulder so often for looming cracks. [DF]