<
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20231110-why-walking-backwards-can-be-good-for-your-health-and-brain>
'On an apparent wager to win $20,000 (about £4,250 at the time), a 50-year-old
cigar-shop owner called Patrick Harmon embarked on a curious challenge in the
summer of 1915 – he planned to walk backwards from San Francisco to New York
City.
With the aid of a friend and a small car mirror attached to his chest to help
him see where he was going, Harmon made the 3,900 miles (6,300km) journey in
290 days, apparently walking every step backwards. Harmon claimed the journey
made his ankles so strong that "it would take a sledge hammer blow to sprain
them".
Perhaps he was onto something.
According to research, walking backwards can have surprising benefits for both
your physical health and your brain, as Michael Mosley recently explored in a
recent episode of the BBC podcast and Radio 4 show
Just One Thing.
Retro-walking, as walking backwards is known in academic circles, has a rich
history. There are reports dating back to the early 19th Century of people
walking hundreds, and sometimes thousands of miles, in reverse. Many were the
result of impulsive bets and others were simply attempts to claim the bragging
rights to a bizarre new record.
But due to the difference in biomechanics, backwards walking can actually bring
some physical benefits. It is often used in physiotherapy to relieve back pain,
knee problems and arthritis. Some studies even suggest that backwards walking
can positively affect cognitive abilities such as memory, reaction time and
problem-solving skills.
The practice of walking backwards for health purposes is thought to have
originated in ancient China, but it has received attention from researchers
more recently in the US and Europe as a way of improving sports performance and
to build muscle strength.'
Via
Future Crunch:
<
https://futurecrunch.com/good-news-tb-emissions-china-deforestation-colombia/>
See also The Goons -
I’m Walking Backwards for Christmas:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e61uC-5s9VU
Share and enjoy,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
