A slow
amble is shown in the above cartoon. The step sequence of the amble is shown at the right.
The
slow amble (running walk; quick walk) is essentially an accelerated walk, but the limbs move in more rapid succession. It has four beats and the same sequence of limb impact as the walk. A typical stride cycle would involve, e.g., right diagonal, left lateral, left diagonal, and right lateral (illustrated left).
In a
fast amble the support is alternately one limb and two limbs. The support pattern in a typical stride cycle would be, e.g., right fore, right diagonal, left hind, left lateral, left fore, left diagonal, right hind, right lateral.
The elephant is used to illustrate a
slow amble because that is an elephant's natural brisk gait. The amble is also a common gait for horses; in particular, the Tennessee Walking Horse employs it in association with long stride lengths. The amble is an unusual gait for dogs. They use it only briefly as a transition gait.
