This Is AuburnElectronic Theses and Dissertations

THE INFLUENCE OF A PREPARATORY ARM SWING ON LOWER EXTREMITY KINEMATICS DURING A HORIZONTAL JUMP

Date

2021-08-05

Author

Hill, Imani

Type of Degree

Master's Thesis

Department

Kinesiology

Abstract

Horizontal jumping is a ballistic motion that includes horizonal propulsion, during which many athletes experience movement deficits like knee valgus and foot pronation that are known to be indicators of muscular weakness, deficits or predisposition to injury, making it a valuable motion to study. This project endeavored to investigate how a novel arm swing preparation motion may influence knee valgus and foot eversion during the horizontal jump. The novel arm swing had the participants perform the usual arm swing several times before jumping. The results indicated no significant difference in either knee or foot motion between jump conditions. A significant difference was noted between right and left knee valgus when collapsed across all jumps. While this project failed to reach significance between jumps it did suggest that researchers should investigate both limbs to assure that critical information is not missed.