Meeting Abstract
The factors that influence the metabolic cost of locomotion during vertical climbing are not well understood. Previous studies in primates and other animals have demonstrated that mass specific cost of transport for climbing is independent of body size across species, but effects of speed, route difficulty, and within-species variation are largely untested. Here, we assess the effects of speed, route difficulty, and anatomical variation on the energetic cost of climbing. Eighteen experienced, adult human climbers in two populations (U.S., n=12; Tanzania, n=6) climbed a set of laps over a range of levels of difficulty and speeds, with energy expenditure measured via respirometry. As with interspecific studies, we found no effect of body mass on the mass-specific cost of transport. Further, results indicate that route difficulty has no significant effect on energy expenditure. Climbing speed was positively correlated with efficiency (meters climbed/calories expended/kilogram) due to the greater postural cost of clinging onto the substrate at slower speeds. This suggests that both increasing speed (which may be limited by muscle fatigue) and decreasing postural cost are avenues to decrease the energetic cost of climbing.
