Leg stiffness and performance in footballers

NewsBot · Jul 12, 2017

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The relationship between mechanical stiffness and athletic performance markers in sub-elite footballers
Judd T. Kalkhoven & Mark L. Watsford
Journal of Sports Sciences 12 Jul 2017

This study investigated the relationship between several measures of lower-body stiffness and physical performance variables in 22 sub-elite male football players (mean ± SD; 21.9 ± 1.5 yr; 1.79 ± 0.06 m; 72.2 ± 7.2 kg). The participants were assessed for individual muscle stiffness of the Rectus Femoris (RF), Biceps Femoris (BF) and Medial Gastrocnemius (MG) muscles and vertical stiffness (Kvert) was also assessed assessed running acceleration, maximal sprint speed, agility, vertical jumping and muscular strength. Pearson’s correlations quantified the relationships and participants were also separated into relatively stiff (SG) and compliant groups (CG) for each variable. When ranked by Kvert the SG exhibited superior performance during sprinting, agility, jumping and strength (p ≤ 0.05) and when ranked by RF stiffness, SG exhibited superior sprint, agility and drop jump performance (p ≤ 0.05), while MG and BF stiffness were not related to performance. Higher stiffness appears to be beneficial to athletic performance for football players and therefore it may be beneficial for practitioners working with athletes that are required to perform dynamic activities to consider the contribution of stiffness to athletic performance.
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Admin2 · Jul 12, 2017

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NewsBot · Jul 7, 2019

Relationship between vertical stiffness and soft-tissue injuries in professional Australian football
Daniel Sporri, Matthew J. Pine, Matthew L. Cameron, Robert W. Spurrs, William B. Sheehan, Robert G. Bower
Journal of Sports Sciences : 06 Jul 2019

Soft-tissue injuries are common in Australian football. Recently, literature has identified non-modifiable and modifiable risk factors, including vertical stiffness (Kvert). However, limitations regarding measurement frequency and duration exist; thus, further information is required about the role of Kvert as a modifiable risk factor for injury. This study examined the seasonal variation in Kvert and its relationship to soft-tissue injuries in professional Australian football. The mean Kvert and bilateral asymmetry were assessed and compared between injured and non-injured players. For the seasonal analysis, 56 players were tested across two seasons with no variation in bilateral asymmetry evident (p= 0.33). While there were generally no changes in Kvert, the value from the end of the second pre-season revealed 5% lower values than the mean of two seasons (p= 0.02). Considering the injury analysis, 21 lower-body soft-tissue injuries were recorded from 18 participants. No differences were recorded for mean Kvert between the injured and non-injured groups (p= 0.16–0.76). When assessing Kvert asymmetry, the injured group displayed a 4.5% higher value than the non-injured group at the end of the pre-season test (p= 0.03) but not at other time-points (p= 0.16–0.99). Higher Kvert bilateral asymmetry measures after the pre-season appear to be related to lower-body soft-tissue injury in professional Australian footballers. Medical and conditioning staff should consider this measure when trying to mitigate the onset of injury or identify at-risk players.
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NewsBot · Feb 27, 2020

Effect of Forefoot and
Midfoot Bending Stiffness on Agility Performance and Foot Biomechanics in Soccer.
Brinkmann DJ et al
J Appl
Biomech. 2020 Feb 25:1-7

Footwear bending stiffness
is known
to positively affect performance in agility maneuvers
due to improved energy storage and propulsion based on a stiffer foot-shoe complex. However, the functional properties of the forefoot and
midfoot differ. Therefore, the present study investigates the effect of the interface of longitudinal bending stiffness and the ratio of forefoot to
midfoot bending stiffness on agility performance and foot biomechanics.
A total of 18 male soccer players performed 2 agility tasks in footwear conditions that
were systematically modified in forefoot and
midfoot bending stiffness. Results revealed that higher longitudinal bending stiffness caused more foot
exorotation at the initial ground contact (P <
.05), less torsion (P <
.001), and an anterior shift in the point of force application during push off (P =
.01). In addition, the authors observed decreased forefoot bending (P <
.05) and increased torsion (P <
.01) in footwear with a higher forefoot-
midfoot ratio. Finally, the agility performance
was significantly impaired by 1.3% in the condition with the highest forefoot-
midfoot ratio (P <
.01). The high forefoot-
midfoot ratio,
that is, a stiff forefoot in combination with a soft
midfoot, seemed to shift the flex line from anterior to posterior that may explain the performance impairment.
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