Your walking speed is a simple and easily measure indicator of your health. This video covers why walking speed is important and how you can check yours!
Walk Talk is a series intended for people or those who support people with walking impairments. The series covers a variety of important topics within walking. We also recommend this series for medical professionals to share with their patients.
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Link to the research article: https://journals.lww.com/jgpt/Fulltext/2009/32020/White_Paper___Walking_Speed__the_Sixth_Vital_Sign_.2.aspx
Key Facts:
– Greater than 2.2 mph = less likely to have an incident requiring hospitalization
– Less than 1.3 mph = more likely to have an incident requiring hospitalization
– 3.0 mph is the average walking speed
Calculating Walking Speed:
– Measure a 20 foot distance, marking both ends.
– Walk from one end to the other and measure the time required to do so.
– Divide 13.64 by the time in seconds to get your speed in MPH (13.64/time = speed)
– Metric version: measure out a 6 meter distance, perform in the same manner, divide 21.6 by the time in seconds to get your speed in KPH (21.6/time = speed)
