The Many Benefits of Walking Backward in Stroke Recovery

I often told people the first year of stroke recovery felt like my own personal quarantine.

Coming on the heels of the COVID-19 lockdowns, my stroke in May 2021 left me feeling like I was living through the early days of the pandemic all over again.

Stuck at home with little to do and nowhere to go on my own, I would often wait for my girlfriend to come home from work so she could drive us to the beach where I could practice walking with her support.

While at the beach, I would often walk backward for 10-15 minutes with her help guiding me through any beachgoers.

It was a super simple exercise that got me out of the house and provided a unique challenge that I felt was making a positive impact on my recovery during those very early weeks and months after stroke.

Now, two years later, I’m relieved that I followed that simple routine so early in my recovery after stroke. In hindsight, I wish I had done it more often over these past two years!

Reflecting on every exercise I’ve experimented with in stroke recovery, walking backward has been one of the simplest, yet most effective exercises that I’ve found in my recovery.

I specifically noticed how it improved my balance, my confidence in walking again, and my speed walking forward. To this day, I’ll still drop it into my exercise routine once or twice a week and feel some noticeable improvements.

How Walking Backward Can Help Stroke Survivors in Physical Therapy

Based on my experience, I wasn’t surprised to find that research indicates walking backward can have some promising impacts on stroke survivors.

Studies show that stroke survivors may benefit from walking backward in a variety of ways. There’s evidence that this practice can improve a stroke survivor’s balance and gait – a person’s manner of walking.

One study found that eight 30-minute sessions of backward walking training produced greater improvements in forward and backward walking speed for stroke survivors than did standard balance training.

There may also be more neurological benefits to walking backward than just the physical aspect of stroke recovery. One study –completely unrelated to stroke – found that when people walked backward they improved their performance on short-term memory tests.

---

After leaving inpatient rehab, my affected side – my left leg – felt incredibly stiff around my ankle and I had a significant limp that made my walk look more like a hobble. I would stretch my calves repeatedly but found little benefit in stretching.

As I’ve written previously, a few weeks before my stroke, I signed up for coaching through the Knees Over Toes program. The warm-up for that program is walking backward for about 10 minutes.

Desperate for any signs of improvement in my physical well-being in those early weeks after stroke, I started walking backward with someone guiding me at the beach or a grassy area in the neighborhood. My hope was that walking backward might loosen up my stiff Achilles, ankle, and calf to make me look normal walking again.

I quickly started to feel a rather significant difference after starting this practice. However, it was not for the reason I originally intended.

Walking backward alone didn’t loosen up my ankle as I had originally hoped. Instead, I noticed a pretty significant improvement in my overall balance. For example, walking upstairs felt much more comfortable and I was not as reliant on using the handrail.

I noticed a pretty significant improvement in my overall balance. For example, walking upstairs felt much more comfortable and I was not as reliant on using the handrail.

In everyday life, the cliché “The faster you can move backward, the faster you can move forward” was certainly true for me.

How to Add Walking Backward to Physical Therapy in Stroke Recovery

The beauty of walking backward is its simplicity. It’s a challenging exercise, but one you can complete at your own pace.

When starting out, it will be helpful to have a friend or family member walking by your side and watching for any obstacles that may be behind you. It’s also best to practice on a soft surface like grass or sand instead of a parking lot should you fall.

For proper form, it’s important to make sure you’re pushing off through your big toe rather than shuffling backward as Ben Patrick explains in this video.

Personally, I also prefer to walk barefoot when walking backward. I’ve noticed it to be easier and more comfortable than wearing shoes on the grass or sand.

In terms of time, I started out with 10 minutes per session, which was the recommended warmup in the Knees Over Toes program.

However, the study I cited earlier that highlighted benefits for stroke survivors had individuals walk backward anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes a day multiple times throughout the week.

As walking backward gets easier, you might consider adding resistance to your workout. For me, I have a friend hold a resistance band around my waist to increase the level of difficulty (pictured).

If you’ve found walking backward to be a helpful exercise in your recovery after stroke, drop a note in the comments section below about your experience. I’d love to hear your story.