A modest increase in walking pace — just 14 more steps per minute — can help frail and prefrail older adults regain strength and independence, according to a new study published in PLOS ONE.
Researchers found that those who pushed themselves to walk “as fast as safely possible” were significantly more likely to improve their functional capacity than peers who walked at their usual leisurely pace.
Testing whether pace makes a difference
The research team, led by Daniel S. Rubin and colleagues at Northwestern University and University of Chicago, analyzed 102 adults over age 60 living in retirement communities. All were classified as frail or prefrail — meaning they already experienced weakness, fatigue, and slowness that increased their risk of falls, hospitalization, and loss of independence. Participants joined a supervised 12-week walking program and were randomly assigned to either a high-intensity group, walking briskly, or a casual-speed group, walking comfortably.
Over the study, the high-intensity group increased their median walking cadence to about 100 steps per minute, while the casual group stayed closer to 77. The high-intensity walkers were much more likely to improve on a standardized six-minute walk test, with a threefold increase in odds of surpassing the clinically meaningful improvement threshold.
What the study found:
- High-intensity group: median cadence of 100 steps/min in final phase, compared to 77 in casual group
- 65% of brisk walkers achieved clinically meaningful improvement, vs. 39% of casual walkers
- Each 14-step/min increase over baseline boosted odds of improvement by 10%
- Benefits held even after adjusting for age, sex, education, and baseline frailty
Why cadence matters
Cadence — steps per minute — is an easy-to-measure, objective way to gauge walking intensity. Rubin noted that older adults often can’t rely on heart rate or subjective effort to pace themselves, especially if they take medications that blunt cardiovascular response. In this study, a simple accelerometer worn on the thigh recorded each participant’s cadence during the walking sessions, avoiding the inaccuracies of wrist-based fitness trackers.
“We demonstrated that an increase of 14 steps per minute above a person’s usual pace was enough to significantly improve functional capacity,” the authors wrote. That’s roughly the difference between a relaxed stroll and a brisk but sustainable pace.
A practical, low-tech intervention
The findings support walking as a scalable, low-cost intervention for frailty. Unlike strength-training or balance-focused regimens, walking requires no special equipment and can be performed in familiar environments. The study’s supervised design, however, suggests that some older adults may benefit from encouragement and monitoring to sustain a brisk pace safely.
Future research, the authors note, should explore whether unsupervised older adults can achieve similar gains with simple tools, like smartphone apps or metronomes to keep a steady cadence. But the key takeaway remains clear: even small changes in how fast you walk can make a big difference in how far you’re able to go.
Study: Rubin DS, Hung A, Yamamoto E, et al. (2025) Walking cadence as a measure of activity intensity and impact on functional capacity for prefrail and frail older adults. PLOS ONE 20(7): e0323759. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0323759
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