Abstract
The kinetic and spatiotemporal effects of walking barefoot with a backpack on are unknown. The goal in this study was to see the changes if any in the kinetic and spatiotemporal difference from barefoot to shod walking with and without a backpack on. There healthy young adults walked across a ten meter walkway in four different conditions, barefoot unloaded, barefoot loaded, shod unloaded and shod loaded. At the start and end of the walk way was time system that fixed the velocity at 1.5 meters per second. In the center of the walkway were two force plates that recorded the spatiotemporal and kinetic data. The load was 15% of the volunteer’s weight. An increase in step time was recorded from shod to barefoot in both loaded and unloaded conditions. From barefoot unloaded to bare foot loaded there was little change the loading rate while there was a large change in the peak vertical. The difference that occurred from barefoot to shod seem to be from the padding and the discomfort of the lack of padding. From this the conclusion was made that the rate at which force is developed matters less than the amount of force itself that is being applied.