Identifying the Number of Steps Required for Familiarisation to Athletic Footwear in Healthy Older Adults.

Introduction: Research on athletic footwear familiarisation within an older population is sparse. This is problematic because unfamiliar footwear may act as a new perturbation and modify older adults' walking gait and stability. In addition, while athletic footwear has been suggested to enhance older adults' comfort and support during activities of daily living, the necessary period for familiarisation with athletic footwear is unknown.

The reliability and suitability of strength assessments in frail and pre-frail older adults: recommendations for strength testing in older populations.

Background: Lifelong strength is fundamental to physical function, health, and quality of life. Reliable appropriate strength assessment measures for older adults play an important role in effective evaluation of baseline ability and exercise prescription to counter disease and disuse. This study aimed to investigate the within-session reliability of maximal isometric knee extension and flexion, hip abduction and adduction, and handgrip strength measures in frail and pre-frail older adults.

Relationships Between Highly Skilled Golfers' Clubhead Velocity and Vertical Ground Reaction Force Asymmetry During Vertical Jumps and an Isometric Midthigh Pull.

Wells, JET, Mitchell, ACS, Charalambous, LH, and Fletcher, IM. Relationships between highly skilled golfers' clubhead velocity and vertical ground reaction force asymmetry during vertical jumps and an isometric midthigh pull. J Strength Cond Res 34(10): 2824-2831, 2020-Clubhead velocity (CHV) is a commonly measured variable within golf due to strong associations with increased drive distance.

Unilateral Stiffness Interventions Augment Vertical Stiffness and Change of Direction Speed.

Maloney, SJ, Richards, J, Jelly, L, and Fletcher, IM. Unilateral stiffness interventions augment vertical stiffness and change of direction speed. J Strength Cond Res 33(2): 372-379, 2019-It has previously been shown that preconditioning interventions can augment change of direction speed (CODS).

Relationships between Challenge Tour golfers' clubhead velocity and force producing capabilities during a countermovement jump and isometric mid-thigh pull.

A number of field-based investigations have evidenced practically significant relationships between clubhead velocity (CHV), vertical jump performance and maximum strength. Unfortunately, whilst these investigations provide a great deal of external validity, they are unable to ascertain vertical ground reaction force (vGRF) variables that may relate to golfers' CHVs. This investigation aimed to assess if the variance in European Challenge Tour golfers' CHVs could be predicted by countermovement jump (CMJ) positive impulse (PI), isometric mid-thigh pull (IMTP) peak force (PF) and rate of force development (RFD) from 0-50 ms, 0-100 ms, 0-150 ms and 0-200 ms.

Lower limb stiffness testing in athletic performance: a critical review.

Stiffness describes the resistance of a body to deformation. In regard to athletic performance, a stiffer leg-spring would be expected to augment performance by increasing utilisation of elastic energy. Two-dimensional spring-mass and torsional spring models can be applied to model whole-body (vertical and/or leg stiffness) and joint stiffness.

A Comparison of Bilateral and Unilateral Drop Jumping Tasks in the Assessment of Vertical Stiffness.

This study sought to compare vertical stiffness during bilateral and unilateral drop jumping. Specifically, the intersession reliabilities and force-deformation profiles associated with each task were to be examined. On 3 occasions, following familiarization, 14 healthy males (age: 22 [2] y; height: 1.

Relationships between highly skilled golfers' clubhead velocity and force producing capabilities during vertical jumps and an isometric mid-thigh pull.

Whilst previous research has highlighted significant relationships between golfers' clubhead velocity (CHV) and their vertical jump height and maximum strength, these field-based protocols were unable to measure the actual vertical ground reaction force (vGRF) variables that may correlate to performance. The aim of this study was to investigate relationships between isometric mid-thigh pull (IMTP), countermovement jump (CMJ), squat jump (SJ) and drop jump (DJ) vGRF variables and CHV in highly skilled golfers. Twenty-seven male category 1 golfers performed IMTP, CMJ, SJ and DJ on a dual force platform.

Do stiffness and asymmetries predict change of direction performance?

Change of direction speed (CODS) underpins performance in a wide range of sports but little is known about how stiffness and asymmetries affect CODS. Eighteen healthy males performed unilateral drop jumps to determine vertical, ankle, knee and hip stiffness, and a CODS test to evaluate left and right leg cutting performance during which ground reaction force data were sampled. A step-wise regression analysis was performed to ascertain the determinants of CODS time.

A comparison of methods to determine bilateral asymmetries in vertical leg stiffness.

Whilst the measurement and quantification of vertical leg stiffness (Kvert) asymmetry is of important practical relevance to athletic performance, literature investigating bilateral asymmetry in Kvert is limited. Moreover, how the type of task used to assess Kvert may affect the expression of asymmetry has not been properly determined. Twelve healthy males performed three types of performance tasks on a dual force plate system to determine Kvert asymmetries; the tasks were (a) bilateral hopping, (b) bilateral drop jumping and (c) unilateral drop jumping.

Reliability of Unilateral Vertical Leg Stiffness Measures Assessed During Bilateral Hopping.

The assessment of vertical leg stiffness is an important consideration given its relationship to performance. Vertical stiffness is most commonly assessed during a bilateral hopping task. The current study sought to determine the intersession reliability, quantified by the coefficient of variation, of vertical stiffness during bilateral hopping when assessed for the left and right limbs independently, which had not been previously investigated.

Changing the stability conditions in a back squat: the effect on maximum load lifted and erector spinae muscle activity.

The aim of this study was to identify how changes in the stability conditions of a back squat affect maximal loads lifted and erector spinae muscle activity. Fourteen male participants performed a Smith Machine (SM) squat, the most stable condition, a barbell back (BB) squat, and Tendo-destabilizing bar (TBB) squat, the least stable condition. A one repetition max (1-RM) was established in each squat condition, before electromyography (EMG) activity of the erector spinae was measured at 85% of 1-RM.

Ballistic exercise as a pre-activation stimulus: a review of the literature and practical applications.

Post-activation potentiation (PAP) refers to the acute enhancement of muscular function as a direct result of its contractile history. Protocols designed to elicit PAP have commonly employed heavy resistance exercise (HRE) as the pre-activation stimulus; however, a growing body of research suggests that low-load ballistic exercises (BE) may also provide an effective stimulus. The ability to elicit PAP without the need for heavy equipment would make it easier to utilise prior to competition.

RPE-derived work rates can be accurately produced without external feedback or reference to the RPE Scale.

Ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) are used to prescribe exercise intensity. This study assessed whether the accurate production of exercise intensity is affected when the rater cannot see the RPE scale. After completing a graded exercise test, 15 active, male participants (M age = 34, SD = 6.

An investigation into the effect of a pre-performance strategy on jump performance.

The aim of this study was to explore the effect that different components, making up a commonly used pre-performance preparation strategy, have on jump height performance. Sixteen male collegiate athletes (age, 21.38 ± 0.

The effect of short-term creatine loading on active range of movement.

During high-intensity exercise, intracellular creatine phosphate (PCr) is rapidly broken down to maintain adenosine triphosphate turnover. This has lead to the widespread use of creatine monohydrate as a nutritional ergogenic aid. However, the increase in intracellular PCr and the concomitant increase in intracellular water have not been investigated with regard to their effect on active range of movement (ROM).

An investigation into the effects of different warm-up modalities on specific motor skills related to soccer performance.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of different warm-up stretch modalities on specific high-speed motor capabilities important to soccer performance. Twenty-seven male soccer players performed 3 warm-up conditions, active warm-up (WU), WU with static stretching (SPS), and WU with dynamic stretching (ADS). Heart rate, countermovement jump, 20-m sprint, and Balsom agility tests were performed after each intervention.

The effects of precompetition massage on the kinematic parameters of 20-m sprint performance.

The purpose of this study was to investigate what effect precompetition massage has on short-term sprint performance. Twenty male collegiate games players, with a minimum training/playing background of 3 sessions per week, were assigned to a randomized, counter-balanced, repeated-measures designed experiment used to analyze 20-m sprints performance. Three discrete warm-up modalities, consisting of precompetition massage, a traditional warm-up, and a precompetition massage combined with a traditional warm-up were used.

The effect of different dynamic stretch velocities on jump performance.

Dynamic stretching has gained popularity, due to a number of studies showing an increase in high intensity performance compared to static stretch modalities. Twenty-four males (age mean 21 +/- 0.3 years) performed a standardised 10 min jogging warm-up followed by either; no stretching (NS), slow dynamic stretching at 50 b/min (SDS) or fast dynamic stretching at 100 b/min (FDS).

An investigation into the possible physiological mechanisms associated with changes in performance related to acute responses to different preactivity stretch modalities.

The aim of this study was to explore the potential mechanisms underlying performance changes linked to different warm-up stretch modalities. Twenty-one male collegiate-semiprofessional soccer players (age, 20.8 +/- 2.

The acute effects of combined static and dynamic stretch protocols on fifty-meter sprint performance in track-and-field athletes.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of manipulating the static and dynamic stretch components associated with a traditional track-and-field warm-up. Eighteen experienced sprinters were randomly assigned in a repeated-measures, within-subject design study with 3 interventions: active dynamic stretch (ADS), static passive stretch combined with ADS (SADS), and static dynamic stretch combined with ADS (DADS). A standardized 800-m jogged warm-up was performed before each different stretch intervention, followed by two 50-m sprints.

The effect of different warm-up stretch protocols on 20 meter sprint performance in trained rugby union players.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of different static and dynamic stretch protocols on 20-m sprint performance. The 97 male rugby union players were assigned randomly to 4 groups: passive static stretch (PSS; n = 28), active dynamic stretch (ADS; n = 22), active static stretch (ASST; n = 24), and static dynamic stretch (SDS; n = 23). All groups performed a standard 10-minute jog warm-up, followed by two 20-m sprints.

Effect of an 8-week combined weights and plyometrics training program on golf drive performance.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of a combined weights and plyometrics program on golf drive performance. Eleven male golfers' full golf swing was analyzed for club head speed (CS) and driving distance (DD) before and after an 8-week training program. The control group (n = 5) continued their normal training, while the experimental group (n = 6) performed 2 sessions per week of weight training and plyometrics.