Gait training
Gait training has been studied in 27 papers since 2016: 12 trials and 4 observational studies in people, 10 reviews; 8 in the past year. The newest paper, Oct 23, 2026: “The contribution of physical therapy to functioning and quality of life in older adults with Parkinson's disease and a reduced response to levodopa”.
27 papers study it18 findingsUpdated
2 new papers in 30 daysSee all 26
“6MWD was higher by 64.14 m (95% CI 45.62 to 82.08; p < 0.001; r = 0.581), and TUG was lower by 6.09 s (95% CI −7.67 to −4.47; p < 0.001; r = 0.594).”
None of its findings points the other way.
- 6 independent labs in 5 countries
- Funders: Universitatea de Medicină şi Farmacie din Craiova and 4 more
- Human trial12
- Humans4
Studies in people
5 studies gave gait training to people and measured what changed.
up: Improves quality of lifepartial η2 = 0.499, p = .002
up: Improves walking capacitypartial η2 = 0.415, p = .005
no change: Has no effect on walking speedp = .182
Trial17 people4 weeks
Stroke survivors
Physiotherapy theory and practice, Feb 12, 2026
up: Improves 6-minute walk distance+64.14 m, 95% CI 45.62 to 82.08
up: Improves timed Up and Go-6.09 s, 95% CI −7.67 to −4.47
up: Improves WOMAC score
Randomized trial130 people65 to 80 years2 weeks
Patients presenting with bilateral knee osteoarthritis
Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania), Nov 28, 2025
up: Improves gait adaptabilityd = −0.90
Trial30 people6 males, 24 femalesmean age 68.8 ± 3.9 years20 min
Journal of clinical medicine, Nov 22, 2025
down: Decreases foot placement error
up: Improves gait stability
Trial10 people7 males & 3 females≥ 65 years oldfour weeks
Fit older adults with a low concern of falling
PloS one, Nov 1, 2023
no change: Has no effect on movement-specific reinvestmentηp2 < 0.001
up: Improves balance
Randomized trial71 people82.14% female82.17 ± 6.63 years4 weeks
Community-dwelling older adults at risk of falling
International journal of environmental research and public health, Dec 25, 2022
What did studies of Gait training find?
14Studies of Gait training measured 14 outcomes; the most studied are WOMAC score (1 study), timed Up and Go (1) and 6-minute walk distance (1).
WOMAC score
upin humans1
1 study
WOMAC score
upin humans1
Gait training improves WOMAC score in humans.
“Pain (VAS) and disability indices (WOMAC, Lequesne Index) were significantly lower in the study group compared with controls at follow-up, with confidence intervals excluding zero and small-to-moderate effects depending on the measure.”
Human trial2 weeks
Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania)
Gait training improves WOMAC score in humans (~8.5 points).
“WOMAC total by ~8.5 points”
Human trialbilateral knee osteoarthritis2 consecutive weeksn = 112
Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania)
Timed Up and Go
upin humans1
1 study
Timed Up and Go
upin humans1
Gait training improves timed Up and Go in humans (-6.09 s, 95% CI −7.67 to −4.47).
“6MWD was higher by 64.14 m (95% CI 45.62 to 82.08; p < 0.001; r = 0.581), and TUG was lower by 6.09 s (95% CI −7.67 to −4.47; p < 0.001; r = 0.594).”
Human trial2 weeks
Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania)
Gait training improves timed Up and Go in humans (~2.6 s).
“TUG improved by ~2.6 s”
Human trialbilateral knee osteoarthritis2 consecutive weeksn = 112
Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania)
6-minute walk distance
upin humans1
1 study
6-minute walk distance
upin humans1
Gait training improves 6-minute walk distance in humans (+64.14 m, 95% CI 45.62 to 82.08).
“6MWD was higher by 64.14 m (95% CI 45.62 to 82.08; p < 0.001; r = 0.581), and TUG was lower by 6.09 s (95% CI −7.67 to −4.47; p < 0.001; r = 0.594).”
Human trial2 weeks
Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania)
Gait training improves 6-minute walk distance in humans (~59 m).
“6MWD increased by approximately 59 m”
Human trialbilateral knee osteoarthritis2 consecutive weeksn = 112
Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania)
Movement-specific reinvestment
no changein humans1
1 study
Movement-specific reinvestment
no changein humans1
Gait training has no effect on movement-specific reinvestment in humans (ηp2 < 0.001).
“There was no significant group × time interaction effect (F[2, 53] = 0.01, p = 0.99, ηp2 < 0.001) on movement-specific reinvestment propensity.”
Human trial4 weeksn = 56
International journal of environmental research and public health
Gait training has no effect on movement-specific reinvestment in humans.
“Our findings revealed a lack of training effect on reinvestment propensity for all groups.”
Human trial12 training sessionsn = 71
International journal of environmental research and public health
Walking speed
no changein humans1
1 study
Walking speed
no changein humans1
Gait training has no effect on walking speed in humans (p = .182).
“In contrast, changes in walking speed were not statistically significant”
Human trialstroke survivors4 weeksn = 17
Physiotherapy theory and practice
Walking capacity
upin humans1
1 study
Walking capacity
upin humans1
Gait training improves walking capacity in humans (partial η2 = 0.415, p = .005).
“Walking capacity demonstrated a statistically significant increase among all participants”
Human trialstroke survivors4 weeksn = 17
Physiotherapy theory and practice
Quality of life
upin humans1
1 study
Quality of life
upin humans1
Gait training improves quality of life in humans (partial η2 = 0.499, p = .002).
“Significant within-group improvement was observed in overall QoL”
Human trialstroke survivors4 weeksn = 17
Physiotherapy theory and practice
Gait adaptability
upin humans1
1 study
Gait adaptability
upin humans1
Gait training improves gait adaptability in humans (d = −0.90).
“Gait speed increased (t(12) = −3.24, p < 0.01, d = −0.90) and step width decreased significantly after training (t(12) = 2.73, p = 0.02, d = 0.76).”
Human trialin medium FoF group during walking with maximum speed20 minn = 14
Journal of clinical medicine
Gait stability
upin humans1
1 study
Gait stability
upin humans1
Gait training improves gait stability in humans.
“In the normal walking condition, gait stability was significantly affected by Week and Session (p<0.05).”
Human trialfour weeksn = 10
PloS one
Foot placement error
downin humans1
1 study
Foot placement error
downin humans1
Gait training decreases foot placement error in humans.
“For the normal walking condition, we found a significant effect of Week on the foot placement error.”
Human trialfour weeksn = 10
PloS one