Participants performed three practice sessions at a self-selected speed and data were captured for three subsequent repetitions of each activity. Three trials were performed and the average of the three was taken. The trials were labeled

manually and processed using a purpose written program in Vicon Body builder software. The data were output as ASCII files and imported into Excel for further analysis. A purpose written program in Excel was used to amalgamate the data on the knee and hip angles and moments produced during the above functional BYL719 order activities. The muscle strength data were combined with the biomechanical moment and angle data to determine the “FD” placed on the muscles during stair negotiation. FD for a muscle group was defined as the muscle moment required at a particular joint angle, divided by the maximum isometric muscle strength available at that joint angle (expressed as a percentage). In other words the functional moment

occurring at a particular position in the joint range was compared with the muscle strength obtained from muscle tests performed at the same position within the joint range. FD was therefore calculated on an instant-to-instant basis for the joint and using the relevant muscle strength for that SGI-1776 datasheet joint at that angle. A linear interpolation was used to estimate joint strength between the muscle test angles as a first approximation. Ideally, it would have been helpful to have measured isometric strength at a greater number of joint positions in order to have a more continuous strength curve. However, we were limited to three positions in order to minimize the effect of fatigue. FD was calculated throughout the movement as the ratio of the moment produced during a functional activity (the moment required to carry out the movement, the demand) to the actual available isometric muscle strength for the respective muscle group at that angle (the participant’s maximum moment generating capacity). For example, if the knee required to produce a moment (estimated from the biomechanical analysis) of 50 Nm at an angle of 45° and our muscle cAMP strength data indicated their maximum

isometric strength at this angle was 100 Nm then the FD would be 50%. If the demand and capacity were equal then the FD would be 100% and if the demand outstripped the capacity then the FD would exceed 100% of the maximal isometric strength at that angle. This is possible during eccentric and concentric contractions where the literature indicates that these may exceed isometric strength by 15–25%. Descriptive statistics were computed and analysis was carried out using SPSS version 16. Data were examined for normality using the Shapiro–Wilks test and were found to be normally distributed. Comparisons between groups were made using analysis of variance. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Data were expressed as means and standard deviations (SD) in the text and tables.