Swinging of arms

Hi all,
I would like to discuss on the topic " Why are we swinging our arms while walking/running?". From what I have read about the human evolution, Homo genus has evolved from the quadru-pedal movement to bipedal movement through a series of species (like Homo habilis, Homo erectus...). The reason being that the energy spent on bipedal movement is less than that of quadru-pedal motion. We.. Homo sapiens exhibit quadru-pedal movement during childhood (sometime less than 1 year). From the data I have on the evolution of Human brain, the portion of the brain which takes care of the fundamental functions remain same but with some minor differences. So, I guess the part of the brain which issues command for locomotion, still remains differentiably common and hence the movement of our hands, which were forelimbs of some lesser mammals.

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Not everyone naturally swings their arms when they walk. I didn't until I made a conscious effort to teach myself to.

The easy and quick response is that it helps balance. This is certainly demonstrated in situations where balance is critical, but it doesn't answer why swinging arms is so pervasive while walking and generally only restricted when the arms are used for something else.We also see that breathing is augmented in horses when running by the action of the limbs stretching and contracting the chest area: swinging arms may make breathing easier for other gaits as well. This would be an evolved behavior (ie the breathing came first, so the arm swinging was kept as a vestige of the previous four legged gait behavior).ps - welcome to the frayEdited by RAZD, : ps

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Human bipedalism is awkward at best.Basically as we walk we fall forward and use our legs to keep us from collapsing.Swinging the arms helps maintain balance - something we don't exactly have in spades.You can run with your arms down by your side, or with something in your arms, but you'll notice that you feel a lot less stable doing so.An interesting thing to study would be running patterns of people born without one or both arms. See how they've adapted. See what works for them.If someone born stubs for arms is swinging them when he runs, then perhaps it's hardwired in the brain.

Actually, I believe that even the earliest of the Homo genus were bipedal. So, the species through which bipedalism evolved would probably be the Australopithecines. No, that is a common misnomer. While, if I recall correctly, it is true that in our present state, humans are more efficient than quadrupeds, the intermediate states were not very efficient, so could not present a gradual shift towards increased efficiency.It is more likely that bipedalism was selected for because it allowed for the hands to be free to grab things, like picking fruit or carrying tools. Ok, this is the main point you are trying to make, and in some senses it is indeed true. It's still a matter of debate at the moment, but it appears that all mammals have a 'coupling' of the upper and lower limb control. This has been demostrated in mice and cats, but in humans, as I said, it remains controversial.For a good research overview on this, I suggest the following:Dietz V, "Do human bipeds use quadrupedal coordination?" Trends in Neurosciences 25 (9): 462-467 Sep 2002

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So why did u make a conscious effort to swing your arms? What did you gain from it?

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I think we feel less stable because we got used to it. I do understand that hands can keep us balanced when we lose balance sideways. Like when we walk on a thin platform, we tend to stretch out our hands sideways.. but we push our hands to the front/back while walking, right??.Edited by AdminPD, : Quote Box

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Exactly.The axis of greatest importance while running is the forwards/backwards. That's our greatest risk of falling, so the arms counter balance that. We mitigate the side to side balance needs by our ability to keep widen our stride.During inline walking (tightrope, drunk test, etc) where both feet line up heel toe, we have little to no support on the side to side axis, hence arms outstretched is better for balance than swinging them.

nit pick: Australopithecines were fully bipedal. Bipedalism is about 5 to 6 million years old while Australopithecines are 3 to 4 million years old.Bipedalism precedes the savanna habitat (with refutes it being a cause for evolution of bipedalism, instead showing that hominids were pre-adapted to take advantage of the new environment ... ) Consider how difficult it is to swing your arms with the wrong synchronization with your legs ... this tells me that this pattern is problematic for behavior not being linked.

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Doddy..Thanks for the reference...
I went through that article..supportive...
I also want to stress on the 180 degree phase difference between the forelimb and hindlimb on each side of the body...This difference is seen in some gaits of the lesser mammals...The concept of balance can be applied here, I guess..like when a Tiger lifts both forelimb and hindlimb on left side, it may lose balance..so the 180 degree difference is introduced..and we still have it !!!

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One looks freaky walking without swinging ones arms.

Why do we swing our arms when we walk? Like the others have said, it's probably to keep balance. Try running, and you'll be swinging your arms like crazy. If you try to run without swinging your arms, I believe you are more likely to topple over since you're not balanced. Notice that when you step with your left foot, your right arm tends to swing up and when you step with your right foot, your left arm swings up. That convinces me that you do it for balance.Also, you made a point about babies being quadrupedal before being bipedal. If you observe a baby, as well as any other quadrupedal animal, its right forelimb and left hindlimb are synchronized in motion, just like its left forelimb and right hindlimb.

Other quadrupeds have that synchroniztion maybe because they don't exhibit erect-stance..and likely to lose balance if they move left fore-limb, left hind-limb together...
In humans, that too while walking I don't see that balance coming into the picture..While running, it may help in balancing..as you tend to move your upper body in front...