Help me settle an argument between me and my girlfriend. I find that when we walk (or bike, for that matter), she’s always lagging behind and I really have to struggle to slow down. She claims that my apparent speed (compared to hers) is due to the fact that I’m 4 inches taller than her. I’m not convinced that this disparity makes that big of a difference-- I think she just walks slowly. My question is this: if both of us are walking at the same level of intensity, will I end up significantly in front of her within a relatively short amount of time?
There is a relationship between leg length, stride length, and speed. Here is a link to a high school science activity that demonstrates the relationship.
Generally speaking, the longer your legs, the longer your stride length and the faster you will be able to cover a distance.
I guess I’m not really questioning whether leg length makes a difference-- it definitely does (easily seen when you compare extremes, like a small child walking with a tall adult). I’m more wondering whether the fact that my girlfriend’s legs are 4 inches shorter than mine will manifest itself in 10 feet of difference in less than a minute.
My wife’s legs are 8 inches longer than mine, yet she’s the slower walker.
Yes.
There are formulas given on that page that will allow you to calculate relative stride and speed for each of you. From that you can determine at what point you will overtake her.
Put another way, for every step you take, let’s say her step is 2/3 that length. In the time that you take two steps, she will have to take three, so is already behind you by one step, assuming you are each walking at the same speed.
Some people just walk really slowly and I have never quite figured it out. I am an extremely fast walker and I often try to slow down when I have to walk with other people. It can be difficult but I can usually conscientiously slow down enough to stay beside them.
There have been several people however, that I couldn’t walk slow enough to maintain a walking rhythm. I would just have to take a step or two and then basically stop to let them catch up. It is very uncomfortable and I never figured it out because their legs were moving, they just weren’t really going anywhere.
Sigh. A pain I know all too well.
Think about it. If you both take say 30 strides per minute you will go 120" further in one minute.
You mention bikes however. If you both have the same gear, and diameter wheels, one turn of the pedals is one turn of the pedals your leg length has zero to do with how far you go. How far you travel on a bike per revolution of the pedals only has to do with the diameter of the wheel, the number of teeth on the chainwheel, and the number of teeth on the rear sprocket. If you both have the same size wheel, and are in the same gear who goes faster is a function of pedal RPM.
Speaking as a guy that has very short legs, I can keep up with most everybody I walk with, but it takes some serious effort, and I take a bunch more steps than my tall friends.
The kind of shoes she’s wearing might make a difference too.
For instance, 4" heels would probably make her even slower even though it would negate the difference in leg length.
Erm, no, if they’re walking at the same speed then she keeps up. Perhaps you mean if they are taking the same number of strides per minute?
Just throw in an outside loop every 30 seconds or so while maintaining your walking pace.
Math time!
Let’s be fairly conservative here and say that those four inches of height result in only two inches of difference in stride length. (try measuring sometime, it’s probably more) Let’s also say you’re not walking very fast, only 60 strides per minute. If you take the same number of strides, then in one minute you’ll be 60 strides x 2" per stride = 120" = 10 feet ahead of her. Yup.
In reality, people’s natural stride lengths aren’t perfectly correlated with leg length, and not everyone has the same comfortable walking cadence. But yes, assuming a proportionally shortened stride and the same number of strides per minute, your girlfriend’s lack of height will naturally put her behind you fairly quickly.
This is not the important part, though. The important part is that she is your girlfriend and she does not want to walk that fast. Whether it’s biologically justified or not, you’d better walk slower unless you’d rather not have anyone to wait for. 
Yes, thanks, that’s what I meant! Sometimes it comes out differently than it is in my head. :smack:
Strictly fron antecdotal evidence, I suggest that some people have naturally a faster walking pace than others due to childhood training.
My mother and grandmother are fast-walkers, and firm believers in exercise. When I was a kid, we would go on long walks, briskly marching around the neighborhood or through parks. In essence, I was “trained” to match that quicker pace.
My husband is a full foot taller than I am, and I have short legs for my height. Still, whenever we’re walking together, he has to remind me to slow down to a more moderate pace. To me, it feels normal, but most people walk slower than I do.
Holy cow. You have a deciderization to perform. Do you want to keep the girl or win the argument? First things first and all that.
Funny. SpouseO’s almost a good foot taller than me (he’s 6’6") and I’ve no problems keeping up with him. Yeah, I have to take more steps, but I keep up with his pace.
Somehow, I don’t think it’s your girlfriend’s shorter legs that’s causing the slowdown here.
Yikes, though - aren’t really slow walkers the worst?
Interesting about the stride length. I also wouldn’t completely overlook the shoes aspect. Women frequently wear shoes that require some conscious attention to keeping the shoes on the feet. This is true even for the more practical of women’s dress/professional shoes (say, ballet flats or slingback flats), let alone heels and fashion statements. If that conscious attention requires a shorter stride or fewer strides per minute, she is going to make those changes rather than lose a shoe.
Seconded.
It hurts trying to keep up with tall people. If they’re walking normally, I can do it without too much strain, but if they’re walking any faster than that, my legs really start to ache if I try to match speeds. I can only move my short legs so fast. (I think it’s important to note that I just wear tennis shoes or sandals–not flip flops but the kind that actually stay firmly on one’s foot.)
I’ve taken to just walking as fast as I can without hurting myself and if the tall person wants to get ahead of me, that’s fine. Just don’t complain when it takes me an extra minute to get wherever it is we’re going or that I didn’t respond to(because I couldn’t hear) something you said while you were 10’ ahead of me.
Foot length is also a factor.