Abstract
We investigated the association between bilateral deficit (BLD) in the countermovement jump (CMJ) and change of direction (CoD) performance, CoD deficit, linear sprint, and approach jumping task. The participants (47 young volleyball players; age: 20.8 ± 3.8 years) performed bilateral and single-leg CMJs, modified T-test, 505 CoD test, 25-m sprints (with 5, 10, and 15 splits), and vertical approach jumps. The CoD deficit was also calculated from the 505 test and 10 m split time. BLD was calculated from CMJ jump height, peak power, and phase-specific force impulses (FIs). Several small to moderate statistically significant correlations (r = 0.42–0.49) were found between BLD and 505 times (7 correlations), sprint times (4 correlations), CoD deficit (1 correlation), and approach jump (1 correlation). T-test performance was not correlated with BLD variables (r = −0.15–0.22). The direction of the correlations indicated that the larger BLD is associated with superior performance, with the exception of 1 correlation for 505 times for the left leg and 1 for CoD deficit for the left leg. However, these two variables showed unacceptable reliability. Our results suggest that BLD could be useful in making decisions about the amount inclusion of unilateral training for volleyball players.
Highlights
The term bilateral deficit (BLD) is describing the observation that muscle force generated during maximal bilateral actions is lower than the sum of forces of the left and right limb generated during unilateral contractions (Škarabot et al, 2016)
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between BLD, derived from countermovement jump (CMJ) variables, and CoD performance (T-test and 505 test), CoD deficit, linear sprinting ability, and approach jump performance, on a sample of young male volleyball players
It is noted that only data for the left leg for unilateral CMJ are shown, as there were no differences between the legs in terms of reliability
Summary
The term bilateral deficit (BLD) is describing the observation that muscle force generated during maximal bilateral actions is lower than the sum of forces of the left and right limb generated during unilateral contractions (Škarabot et al, 2016). The BLD in single-joint tasks is currently attributed to neural mechanisms (Škarabot et al, 2016), such as interhemispheric inhibition, while a substantial proportion of the variance in BLD in jumping has been explained by mechanics (Bobbert et al, 2006). While the majority of the studies aimed to explain the underlying mechanisms of BLD, its potential relevance for athletic performance has been somewhat neglected. Jumping tasks seem promising in regard to performance, as they probably encompass both neural and mechanical aspects of BLD (Bobbert et al, 2006; Škarabot et al, 2016). If BLD is related to sports performance, it could be used to guide training-related decisionmaking, such as preferential inclusion of bilateral or unilateral exercises into the training programs of athletes
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