It is easiest to describe the flux of metabolites through a pathway by considering the reaction steps individually. The flux of the metabolites through each reaction (J) is the rate of the forward reaction (V), less that of the reverse reaction (V):
At equilibrium, there is no flux. Furthermore, it is observed that throughout a steady-state pathway, the flux is determined to varying degrees by all steps in the pathway. The degree of influence is measured by the flux control coefficient.