Results from this investigation indicate that performance on functional tasks related to ambulation and balance control are influenced by fitness status and in-flight exercise.
Peak aerobic capacity, lower limb isokinetic strength, and object translation performance were reduced about 1 week after ~6 months of spaceflight.
In-flight cycle ergometer (CEVIS) and treadmill (T2) exercise volume loads were associated with aerobic fitness outcomes.
In-flight resistive exercise (ARED) lower body load was associated with lower body strength.
CEVIS workload (normalized watts) predicted aerobic fitness outcomes and jump settling time, a functional task measure.
Peak aerobic capacity predicted jump settling time.
Preflight lower body strength accounted for a substantial share of variability in select functional performance outcomes.
Functional tasks related to ambulation and balance control are influenced by fitness status and in-flight exercise.
This study looked back at data from 31 astronauts (11 women) who spent about six months in space. It compared their fitness, strength, and performance on functional tasks (such as jumping, balance, and moving objects) before flight and about one week after landing. After the missions, astronauts had lower aerobic capacity (8-10%), weaker leg strength (12-16%), and were about 11% worse at an object translation task. The study also examined how much exercise the astronauts did on the cycle ergometer, treadmill, and resistive exercise device. More cycling and treadmill exercise was linked to better aerobic fitness, and more lower-body resistive exercise was linked to better lower-body strength. Cycling workload and aerobic fitness also predicted how quickly astronauts steadied themselves after a jump, and strength before flight explained a fair amount of the differences in some task results. This research suggests that both being fit before flight and the exercise done during flight may help astronauts keep their ability to walk and balance after returning to a gravity environment. These findings may help in designing exercise programs for future missions, such as Artemis, where astronauts will have to do physically demanding work on planetary surfaces. The study was retrospective, so it shows associations rather than proving cause and effect.
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Upload Your LabsStrock N, Hardy J, Hummel J, Varanoske A, Frisco D, Macaulay T, et al.. (2026). Fitness and in-flight exercise training parameters predictive of functional task performance in astronauts following long-duration spaceflight.. Journal of applied physiology (Bethesda, Md. : 1985). https://doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.90265.2026