Countermovement Jump Inter-Limb Asymmetries in Collegiate Basketball Players

• Main Authors: Aaron Heishman, Bryce Daub, Ryan Miller, Brady Brown, Eduardo Freitas, Michael Bemben
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2019-04-01
• Series: Sports
• Subjects: athlete monitoring; athlete performance; reliability; fatigue monitoring; bilateral countermovement jump; CMJ arm swing; CMJ without arm swing
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4663/7/5/103

The purpose of the present study was to establish the intrasession and intersession reliability of variables obtained from a force plate that was used to quantitate lower extremity inter-limb asymmetry during the bilateral countermovement jump (CMJ). Secondarily, a comparison was performed to determine the influence of the jump protocol CMJ with or without an arm swing (CMJ AS and CMJ NAS, respectively) on inter-limb asymmetries. Twenty-two collegiate basketball players performed three CMJ AS and three CMJ NAS on dual force platforms during two separate testing sessions. A majority of variables met the acceptable criterion of intersession and intrasession relative reliability (ICC &gt; 0.700), while fewer than half met standards established for absolute reliability (CV &lt; 10%). CMJ protocol appeared to influence asymmetries; Concentric Impulse-100 ms, Eccentric Braking Rate of Force Development, Eccentric Deceleration, and Force at Zero velocity were significantly different between jumping conditions (CMJAS versus CMJ NAS; <i>p</i> &lt; 0.05). The present data establish the reliability and smallest worthwhile change of inter-limb asymmetries during the CMJ, while also identifying the influence of CMJ protocol on inter-limb asymmetries, which can be useful to practitioners and clinicians in order to effectively monitor changes associated with performance, injury risk, and return-to-play strategies.