---
title: Increase walking speed and endurance
nct_id: NCT06707402
phase: NA
status: RECRUITING
sponsor: University of Aarhus
study_type: INTERVENTIONAL
canonical_url: "https://parkinsonspathways.com/trial/NCT06707402"
clinicaltrials_gov: "https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06707402"
last_fetched: "2026-05-10T14:03:59.016Z"
source: "Parkinson's Pathways (curated)"
---
# Increase walking speed and endurance

**Goal (in five words):** Increase walking speed and endurance

**Official Title:** The Effects of 24 Weeks Community-based Brisk Walking on Physical Function, Comorbidities, Cognition, Disease Severity, and Health-related Quality of Life in People With Parkinson's Disease.

**Trial ID:** [NCT06707402](https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06707402)

## Key Facts

- **Phase:** NA
- **Status:** RECRUITING
- **Study Type:** INTERVENTIONAL
- **Sponsor:** University of Aarhus
- **Target Enrollment:** 129 participants
- **Start Date:** 2025-03-11
- **Completion Date:** 2027-08-01
- **Conditions:** Parkinson Disease
- **Interventions:** WALK, ACTIVE, CON
- **Intervention Types:** BEHAVIORAL

## Summary For Families

The goal is to find out whether a 24-week, community-based brisk walking program can improve walking ability, other health conditions, thinking, overall Parkinson's severity, and quality of life for people with Parkinson's. The approach uses regular brisk walking to raise heart rate, boost cardiovascular fitness, strengthen the muscles and neural circuits used for gait, and increase brain blood flow and growth factors that support cognition and motor control; it is meant to complement, not replace, medications like levodopa. The trial is looking for adults aged 40 and up with mild to moderate Parkinson's (Hoehn and Yahr stage 1,3) who report walking difficulties and can attend most sessions; people with dementia, major medical problems that prevent intense exercise, depression, pregnancy, alcohol abuse, or who already do frequent high-intensity brisk walking or use an activity tracker during exercise are excluded. The program runs for 24 weeks and aims to test real-world, group-based walking you can do in the community.

## Eligibility

- **Minimum age:** 40 Years
- **Sex:** ALL

### Full Criteria

```
Inclusion Criteria:

1. clinically diagnosed with Parkinson's disease
2. aged ≥40 years
3. Hoehn and Yahr stage ≤3
4. able to independently undertake transportation back and forth from test days and training sessions
5. expectedly able to complete ≥85% of the training sessions
6. experience walking difficulties (the generic walking scale (Walk-12G) score ≥8.5).

Exclusion Criteria:

1. have another neurological disorder or other disorders that affect gait and balance (e.g., severe arthritis or arthrosis)
2. are pregnant
3. have dementia (Montreal Cognitive Assessment score \<18)
4. are suffering from alcohol abuse (i.e., exceeding ten units per week, according to the Danish Health Authority recommendation
5. have cardiovascular, respiratory, orthopedic, or metabolic disorders or other medical comorbidities hindering participation in maximal exercise testing.
6. have a depression
7. use an activity tracker during exercise
8. performing high-intensity brisk walking three or more times during a week.
```

## Locations (1)

- Aarhus University, Department of Public Health, Sport Science, Aarhus C, Denmark _(56.1656, 10.2123)_
  - Frederik B Jensen, MSc — (CONTACT) — +4521268252 — fbj@ph.au.dk

## Central Contacts

- Frederik B Jensen, MSc — (CONTACT) — +4521268252 — fbj@ph.au.dk
- Ulrik Dalgas, Professor — (CONTACT) — dalgas@ph.au.dk

---

*Canonical: https://parkinsonspathways.com/trial/NCT06707402*  
*HTML version: https://parkinsonspathways.com/trial/NCT06707402*  
*Source data: https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06707402*