ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Endocrinol.
Sec. Clinical Diabetes
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fendo.2025.1544831
This article is part of the Research TopicSports, Nutrition, and Public Health: Analyzing their Interconnected ImpactsView all 12 articles
Interval walking training as a potential contributor to motor function improvement in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a retrospective analysis
Provisionally accepted
- Shinshu University, Matsumoto, Japan
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Aim: In adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), hyperglycemia and related complications may impair skeletal muscle mass (SMM) and quality, leading to reduced motor function. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of interval walking training (IWT) on three motor function indicators: peak vertical ground reaction force normalized by body weight (F/w), rate of force development normalized by body weight (RFD/w), and balance index score (BIS). Methods: This retrospective analysis utilized data from a previous pilot trial of IWT. Changes in motor function were assessed using a motor function analyzer, and factors associated with these changes were identified using multiple linear regression analysis.Results: Among 51 adults with T2DM (including 24 aged ≥65 years), IWT significantly improved F/w (median [IQR]: 1.32 [1.26–1.36] to 1.32 [1.27–1.38] kgf/kg, p = 0.038), RFD/w (9.50 [8.03–13.12] to 10.2 [9.43–11.00] kgf/s/kg, p = 0.001), and BIS (52.0 [44.5–55.0] to 54.0 [48.0–56.0], p = 0.020). Notably, RFD/w showed significant improvement in both older (≥65 years: 9.45 [8.25–10.05] to 10.10 [8.80–10.45], p = 0.025) and non-older adults (<65 years: 9.90 [7.75–11.18] to 10.80 [9.58–11.85], p = 0.005). Baseline muscle quality was associated with changes in F/w and RFD/w, while increased leg SMM was linked to improvements in BIS. Conclusions: IWT may serve as a potential contributor to improved motor function in adults with T2DM, particularly when combined with strategies to maintain or enhance skeletal muscle quality and quantity.
Keywords: type 2 diabetes mellitus, Interval walking training, Motor function, muscle quality, muscle mass
Received: 13 Dec 2024; Accepted: 09 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Yamazaki, Hosokawa, Kitajima and Komatsu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Masanori Yamazaki, Shinshu University, Matsumoto, Japan
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