Walking Quality Score

Walking Quality Score summarizes the quality of your walking. It factors in propulsion, heel impact force, stride length, and symmetry. Improving your technique will take time but you will see your score gradually improve, which is the goal. An improving score indicates reduced risk of injury and help to reduce fatigue and back pain. Whereas a declining score may indicate reduction in fitness level or development of musculoskeletal or neurological conditions that warrant discussion with a specialist.

Propulsion

Propulsion describes the speed and angle at which your foot leaves the ground as you step. Low propulsion indicates under-engagement of your calf muscles. Incorporating a few simple calf strengthening exercises into your exercise regimen will help improve propulsion.

Heel Impact Force

Heel Impact Force is the force at which your heel impacts the ground as each step lands. Too heavy of an impact can cause lower leg pain and put excess strain on your knees. To minimize discomfort and reduce the force of heel impact, practice walking lightly. Doing exercises to strengthen your quadriceps muscles will give you increased control over being able to walk lightly. Finally, keeping your weight at a healthy level as recommended by a health professional will also minimize the force of each heel impact.

Symmetry 

Symmetry is the difference in time spent between the left and right phases of your gait, expressed as a percentage. A perfect value would be 100%, meaning the left and right phases are completely even. Some asymmetry in your walking is normal. For example, your legs may be of slightly different lengths or you may have an injury or pain in your legs, ankles or feet. If your symmetry is less than 85%, and none of these common causes of asymmetry are at play, consider consulting a specialist.

After understanding the common causes for asymmetry, if you want to improve your walking symmetry, focus first on your posture. Next, address any underlying strength imbalances by doing exercises that strengthen the leg that is weakest.

Stride Length

Stride length is the distance between two successive heel impacts of the same foot. Stride length and step length are not the same, but quite similar. As mentioned, stride length is the distance between two heel contacts of one foot. Step length is about half of a stride length and describes the distance between the heel impact of one foot and the heel impact of the other foot.

Stride length can be increased with better posture, flexibility, balance, and strength.

Personal Gait Scan 

Your Personal Gait Scan is one of the reports you can unlock in the Baliston Connect™ Journey tab after wearing your Baliston® shoes for 50,000 steps. It is an assessment of your unique walking gait profile based on your walking data over the previous few weeks. You can see metrics that apply to your full gait cycle, like speed, cadence, symmetry, and stride length, and metrics that apply to each of the stance and swing phases. Stance phase metrics include stance time, pronation angles, propulsion, heel impact force and progression angles. Swing phase metrics include swing time, swing width, and swing height.

Cadence

Cadence is a measure of how many steps you take per minute. To change your cadence and continue moving at the same speed, you need to adjust your stride length. For example, to increase your cadence and maintain the same speed, shorten your stride length. Likewise, decreasing your cadence, while maintaining your speed, would require lengthening your stride length.

Speed

Speed is a measure of how much distance you can cover in a given period of time. When walking or running, your speed is calculated by multiplying your cadence and your step length (which is half of your stride length). For example, if your cadence is 120 steps per minute and your stride length is 60 inches, your speed is 3.4 miles per hour. To increase your speed, you need to increase your stride length and/or your cadence.

Pronation 

Pronation is the natural rolling motion from the outside to the inside of the foot, during the stance phase of the gait cycle. It helps in shock absorption by distributing the impact of each step across the foot and lower leg muscles, reducing the stress on any single part of the foot.

However, if your foot rolls inwards too much and more of your weight is on the inside of your foot as you walk, with little space between the floor and the arch of your foot, this is called overpronation.

If your foot rolls outwards too much and more of your weight is on the outside of your foot as you walk, with a hollow between the floor and the arch of your foot, this is called oversupination. Oversupination is less common than overpronation.

Many factors can influence your pronation. For example, the type of shoes, your insoles, your anatomy, and your gait pattern. Reducing overpronation or oversupination can be achieved with the use of appropriate insoles, shoes, or specific ankle and leg exercises. Consult a specialist if you have any questions.

Swing Width

Swing width is the maximum distance between your foot and your line of progression during the swing phase of the gait cycle. Having a wider swing usually indicates weakness in the hip flexor muscles. Include exercises that strengthen these muscles into your exercise regimen to reduce your swing width.

Swing Height

Swing height is the maximum distance between your foot and the ground during the swing phase. A low swing height is often correlated with a higher risk of falling. If you have a high swing height, there is no reason to worry, but if you want to reduce your energy consumption when you walk, you can try lowering your foot height slightly during the swing phase.

Stance Time

Stance time is the proportion of time your foot is on the ground during a gait cycle. Said another way, it is the length of the stance phase of your gait cycle. A long stance time can be explained by gait instability and balance problems and can be correlated with an increased risk of falling. If you have a long stance time, strengthening your balance and leg muscles can help shorten it. On the other end of the spectrum, a short stance time is often a reflection of an increase in walking speed unless your walk is asymmetrical. If your walk is asymmetrical, you may be experiencing pain or dealing with an injury.

Swing Time

Swing time is the proportion of time your foot is off the ground during a gait cycle. Said another way, it is the length of the swing phase of your gait cycle. A short swing time can be explained by gait instability and balance problems and can be correlated with an increased risk of falling. If you have a short swing time, strengthening your balance and leg muscles can help lengthen it. On the other end of the spectrum, a long swing time is often a reflection of an increase in walking speed unless your walk is asymmetrical. If your walk is asymmetrical, you may be experiencing pain or dealing with an injury.

Progression Angle

The progression angle is the angle between your line of progression and your foot's orientation when your foot is flat on the ground. A high foot progression angle, often characterized as walking like a duck, can result in an abnormal gait pattern and may increase the risk of falls and injuries. It can also lead to increased joint stress and pain in your legs, particularly in the knees and ankles. If you are experiencing joint stress and pain in your legs, consider consulting a specialist.

Intense Activity 

The Intense Activity metric tracks how much time each week you spend doing intense activity in accordance with recommendations from major health organizations, such as the World Health Organization, American Heart Association, and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The recommendations are that adults should spend at least 150 minutes per week doing moderate intensity activities, like brisk walking, OR at least 75 minutes per week of vigorous intensity activities, like running. Baliston shoes are ideally suited for brisk walking!