To main content

Metabolic rate and muscle activation level when wearing state-of-the-art cold-weather protective clothing during level and inclined walking

Abstract

Use of cold-weather personal protective clothing (PPC) in cold climates is essential but can add metabolic cost to the wearer. This study measured the effect of wearing state-of-the-art PPC and personal protective equipment (PPE), with the possible effect of clothing layers and fit, on physiological responses including metabolic rate (MR) and muscle activation level. 19 male participants (80.2 ± 5.9 kg, 181.5 ± 5.1 cm) wore five different clothing ensembles during level (0°) and inclined (6°) walking. Compared to a base layer ensemble (388.7 ± 42.7 W/737.8 ± 57.9 W), wearing a 3-layer PPC ensemble (421.5 ± 44.7 W/811.7 ± 69.2 W) significantly increased MR, and adding PPE (458.3 ± 59.8 W/864.5 ± 71.2 W) further increased MR during level/inclined walking. Independent of the extra weight, adding a middle layer between base layer and outer clothing significantly increased MR during inclined walking only, and no effect of oversized outer clothing was measured.

Category

Academic article

Language

English

Author(s)

  • Julie Renberg
  • Maren Trones Christiansen
  • Øystein Wiggen
  • Karin Roeleveld
  • Ellen Marie Bardal
  • Randi Eidsmo Reinertsen

Affiliation

  • SINTEF Digital / Health Research
  • Norwegian University of Science and Technology

Year

2020

Published in

Applied Ergonomics

ISSN

0003-6870

Volume

82

View this publication at Norwegian Research Information Repository