Title: The Effects of Voluntary Step-Training on Slip Recovery

Falls caused by slips are a major health risk to older adults and place a large financial strain on the health care system. Previous research has found that individuals can learn to recover their balance after being exposed to a series of simulated slips. However, training large numbers of older adults through repeated slip exposure is logistically improbable. An easier and less expensive method of training people not to fall is needed. The purpose of this study was to determine whether training the voluntary stepping response would improve the recovery response to an unexpected slip to a similar extent as seen with repeated slip training. A sliding platform was used to cause 34 healthy young adults to lose their balance while rising from a simulated lifting task. Seventeen subjects in the slip-training group were exposed to slipping perturbations in varying, unpredictable directions for 26 trials. Seventeen subjects in the step-training group performed a corresponding sequence of cued voluntary stepping for 25 trials, followed by a single unexpected slip. Subjects were removed from data analysis if they fell or took a fundamentally different recovery step. Nineteen variables quantifying the proactiv