Why do we swing our arms back and forth while walking?

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It is rather difficult to say exactly why we swing our arms when walking, but there is no doubt that it is much easier to walk in comfort if the arms are allowed to swing naturally than if they are held stiffly by the sides of the body. Probably, therefore, the swing of the arms assists us in unconsciously keeping accurate balance as we move along, first on the one foot and then on the other.

Perhaps, it may be partly a relic of the time when primitive animals used their arms as well as their legs in walking, as a chimpanzee will do. In any case, the fact is that it is so much more comfortable to walk swinging the arms. It seems that Nature may have intended the swinging to help is in accurate movement.

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