Metabolic cost adaptation during training with a soft exosuit assisting the hip joint

Different adaptation rates have been reported in studies involving ankle exoskeletons designed to reduce the metabolic cost of their wearers. The purpose of this study was to characterize energetic adaptations occurring over multiple training sessions in a novel exosuit assisting the hip joint. The percentage change between powered and unpowered conditions was significantly larger at Session 3 (-10.5±4.5%) compared to Session 1 (-6.2±3.9%). However, Session 3 reductions were similar to the percentage change at Session 5 (-10.3±4.7%), indicating that two 20-minute sessions may be sufficient for users to fully maximize the metabolic benefit provided. Metabolic adaptations were also retained 5-months following the final training session.