Estimating Energy Expenditure during Level, Uphill, and Downhill Walking.

Introduction: The load carriage decision aid (LCDA) walking equation was developed from literature-aggregated group mean data to calculate standing and level walking energy expenditures in healthy, military-age adults. The LCDA walking equation has not been validated for use in individuals or graded walking.

Purpose: We aimed to validate the LCDA walking equation as a predictor of standing and level walking energy expenditure in individuals and expand to a new graded walking equation for uphill and downhill walking.