====== Human running gait ======

Humans tend to run with arms bent at an acute angle. The reasons are unclear. A 2019 study published in the //Journal of Experimental Biology// found that there could be an energy advantage for //walking //with elbows //slightly// bent - but was unable to account for the bent-elbows-whilst-running phenomenon

>Although we have focused on energetic cost as a mechanism in this study, stereotypical bent arm running may result from a non-energetic benefit. For instance, the biceps muscle is thought to link the inertia of the forearm and the head during running for the purpose of head stabilization (Lieberman, 2011); bent arms increases the flexion moment at the elbow and therefore may provide a head stabilization benefit. We must also consider that the stereotyped behavior during running may not provide a benefit at all.
>
>See: [[https://jeb.biologists.org/content/222/13/jeb197228|Straight arm walking, bent arm running: gait-specific elbow angles]] //Journal of Experimental Biology,// 2019 222: jeb197228

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Also see : [[content:life_sciences:human_body:bipedalism]]