Journal of Human Sport and Exercise 

About: Journal of Human Sport and Exercise is an academic journal published by University of Alicante. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Athletes & Population. It has an ISSN identifier of 1988-5202. It is also open access. Over the lifetime, 1535 publications have been published receiving 10040 citations.

The effect of aquatic and land plyometric training on strength, sprint, and balance in young basketball players

Abstract: Arazi H, Asadi A. The effect of aquatic and land plyometric training on strength, sprint, and balance in young basketball players. J. Hum. Sport Exerc. Vol. 6, No. 1, pp. 101-111, 2011. The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of eight weeks of aquatic and land plyometric training on leg muscle strength, 36.5 and 60 meters sprint times, and dynamic balance test in young male basketball players. Eighteen young male basketball players (age=18.81±1.46 years, height=179.34±6.11 cm, body mass=67.80±9.52 kg, sport experience=4.8±2.47 years) volunteered in this study and divided to three groups; aquatic plyometric training (APT), land plyometric training (LPT) and control group (CON). Experimental groups trained; ankle jumps, speed marching, squat jumps, and skipping drills for eight weeks and 3 times a week for 40 min. The data were analyzed by one way analysis of variance with repeated measures, a Tukey post hoc testing and independent-sample t-test. The results showed there were not any significant differences between the APT and LPT groups in any of the variables tested (P>0.05). Significant increases were observed in posttraining both APT and LPT groups in 36.5-m and 60-m sprint times record compare to pretraining (P<0.05). There was a significant difference in relative improvement between the APT and CON in 36.5-m, 60-m, and one repetition maximum leg press (P<0.05). We conclude that plyometric training in

Moneyball and soccer - an analysis of the key performance indicators of elite male soccer players by position

Abstract: Hughes M, Caudrelier T, James N, Redwood-Brown A, Donnelly I, Kirkbride A, Duschesne C. Moneyball and soccer - an analysis of the key performance indicators of elite male soccer players by position. J. Hum. Sport Exerc. Vol. 7, No. 2, pp. 402-412, 2012. In most sports, it is found that the important performance indicators (PI’s) vary from coach to coach. Therefore, if sets of PI’s can be identified and clear operational definitions defined, there is significant scope/benefit for consultancy and research, particularly in commercially orientated sports such as soccer. The aim of this study was to use the unique opportunity of a large number of performance analysts coming together to discuss this problem and its application to soccer, and define sets of performance indicators for each position in soccer. In the early spring of 2011, staff from 9 universities, from all over Europe, brought 51 level 3 Sports Science students to Hungary for an Intensive Programme in Performance Analysis of Sport (IPPAS). The 15 staff, all experts in PA, had a total of over 200 years of experience of PA between them. The most experienced ‘experts’ (N=5) acted as mentors, introducing the area, defining the aims and managing the groups. The rest (N=10) and the 51 students were distributed evenly as possible across 7 groups, in which their aim was to define the key PI’s for one of the positions in soccer. The positions used were:- Goalkeepers; Full Backs; Centre Backs; Holding Midfield; Attacking Midfield; Wide Midfield and Strikers. In conclusion, 7 sets of KPI’S, were defined for each of these classifications within 5 category sets: Physiological, Tactical, Technical Defending,Technical - Attacking, and Psychological. These KPI’s were different from position to position within the team, particularly for the Goal Keeper. The KPI’s for the outfield players were very similar, differing only in their order of importance. This enabled a ‘generic’ set of skills required for outfield players in soccer. Key words: MONEYBALL, SOCCER, KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS, ELITE MALE, POSITION

Static and dynamic balance in young athletes

Abstract: Ricotti L. Static and dynamic balance in young athletes. J. Hum. Sport Exerc. Vol. 6, No. 4, pp. 616628, 2011. The creation of a mature athlete necessarily passes through the expression of his potential during each phase of his development. Young athletes’ trainers often neglect specific balance programs, above all in certain sports (e.g. soccer) where balance is poorly considered, but that is fundamental for the execution of complex technical movements, as well as for the prevention of future injuries. In this paper we highlight that balance training at specific ages is important for the maturation of the sensorimotor abilities that are important for a high level athlete. We discuss the main methods used to assess balance in sports, including some useful formulae that can be used to quantify postural performances, and we report the major findings concerning static and dynamic analyses on children and adolescents. Finally, we discuss the existing literature regarding balance recordings on adults, adolescents and children involved in one or more sport activities at regional, national or international level, highlighting the need of further research on the mechanisms underlying balance improvements related to different sport activities at various ages. Keywords: STATIC BALANCE, DYNAMIC BALANCE, COP, CHILDREN TRAINING, YOUNG ATHLETES, POSTURAL PERFORMANCES.

Test-Retest reliability of Biodex Balance SD on physically active old people

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of the Biodex Balance System in elderly. Forty-five subjects aged 66±5.5 years old and weight 71.6±9.8 kg were tested on the Biodex Balance System. In order to calculate the reliability, the Fall Risk Test (FRt) and the Postural Stability Test (PSt) were measured on two separate occasions 7 days apart. Every subject completed the Falls Efficacy Scale-International (FES-I) questionnaire the first day of testing. The Fall Risk Index (FRi) showed a good ICC (.80) and a low percentage of variation of method error. The Overall Stability Index (OSi) showed a good and acceptable reliability measured by the ICC (.69) but a percentage of variation of method error near to 25%. FES-I Score was 23.1 (±7.2). The reliability of the BBS using Bland-Altman method showed that systematic errors (mean difference between test-retest) for the balance test developed were nearly zero and the 95% limits of agreement narrow, indicating a good reliability of the measurement. Biodex balance measures were showed reliable and may be useful for measuring the risk of falls and monitoring programs for prevent falls in elderly. This study revealed that fall risk assessment in older people must be incorporated into the evaluation process of the physical functioning.

The relative importance of strength and power qualities to vertical jump height of elite beach volleyball players during the counter-movement and squat jump

Abstract: Despite the inclusion of beach volleyball as an Olympic discipline with a fully professional world tour, little research has been published that has examined the physical qualities of internationally competitive athletes. Thirty international-standard beach volleyball athletes (14 male, 16 female) performed countermovement jumps (CMJ) and squat jumps (SJ) on a force platform. Ground reaction force (GRF) was collected from three SJ separated by 30 seconds passive rest, followed by three CMJ separated by 30 seconds passive rest. Significant differences (P<0.01) between male and female groups were found for all measured GRF characteristics of the SJ and CMJ, with the exception of peak rate of force development, relative peak force, power and relative average power for the CMJ test. For centre of mass displacement (jump height) the male mean was 8.33cm greater than the female mean. The strongest positive correlations with female jump height were SJ: Relative Peak Power (r=0.90); CMJ: Relative Average Power (r=0.67) The strongest positive correlations with male jump height were SJ: Relative Peak Power (r=0.94); Male CMJ: Relative Peak Power (r=0.83). No significant difference (P<0.05) was shown between male and female stretch shortening cycle (SSC) performance as examined by a prestretch augmentation and eccentric utilisation ratios for jump height and peak power. The findings of this study suggest that relative peak and average power outputs are factors highly associated with vertical jump height in elite male and female beach volleyball players