Effects of 6-week pre-season plyometric training to performance characteristics in female handball players

Mehmet Kale

doi:10.5937/fizkul1602145k

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a 6-week pre-season plyometric training on the performance characteristics in female handball players. Nineteen female handball players voluntarily participated in the study. They were divided into 2 groups [experimental group (ETG; N = 10), and control group (NTG; N = 9)]. Both groups continued regular pre-season training for 6-weeks. The ETG also did plyometric training. Sprints (10 m, 20 m, and 30 m), squat jump (SJ), countermovement jump (CMJ), anaerobic power and capacity (AP and AC), and aerobic variables at fixed blood lactate levels (FBLLs) [running velocity (RV), heart rate (HR), and oxygen consumption (VO2)] were compared before and after the training. The results have shown that there are significant differences in SJ and CMJ (p<0.05), all sprints (p<0.01), AP and AC (p<0.05), VO2max (p<0.01), RV, HR, and VO2 at each of FBLLs (p<0.01) between pre- and post-training results of ETG. Pre- and post training results also showed significant differences in SJ and CMJ (p<0.05), all sprints (p<0.01), and AP (p<0.05) in NTG. In conclusion, was found that a 6-week plyometric training is an important parameter in addition to physical fitness, technical, and tactical training for the female handball players who get prepared for the woman handball super league which affects pre-season performance characteristics.

Highlights

Handball is one of the sporting activities involving a great amount of body contact among players and various lower extremity movements such as starts, stops, jumps, landings, rapid changes in moving directions, repeated accelerations, and sprints, which provoke high mechanical stress on lower extremity due to high ground reaction forces and different upper extremity movements like throwing, fall landings, and ball blocks (Vicente-Rodrigueza, Doradoa, Perez-Gomeza, Gonzalez-Henriquezbi, & Calbet, 2004; Ronglan, Raastad, & Børgese, 2006; Cavala, & Katic, 2010; Massuca, Fragoso, & Teles, 2014; Karcher, & Bucheit, 2014; Wagner, Finkenzeller, Wurth, & von Duvillard, 2014)
experimental group (ETG) and NTG had no significant differences in the pre-training tests for any variable
Bosco and Komi (1979) stated that plyometric training was a loading consisting of concentric contractions after eccentric loading and they bring about stretch reflex, muscle elasticity, neuromuscular adaptation of the Golgi tendon organ (GTO)

Summary

Introduction

Handball is one of the sporting activities involving a great amount of body contact among players and various lower extremity movements such as starts, stops, jumps, landings, rapid changes in moving directions, repeated accelerations, and sprints, which provoke high mechanical stress on lower extremity due to high ground reaction forces and different upper extremity movements like throwing, fall landings, and ball blocks (Vicente-Rodrigueza, Doradoa, Perez-Gomeza, Gonzalez-Henriquezbi, & Calbet, 2004; Ronglan, Raastad, & Børgese, 2006; Cavala, & Katic, 2010; Massuca, Fragoso, & Teles, 2014; Karcher, & Bucheit, 2014; Wagner, Finkenzeller, Wurth, & von Duvillard, 2014) These movements put a lot of strain on different muscles and develop degrees of fatigue, which entails a certain amount of recovery time to restore normal performance level (Ronglan et al, 2006). Gorostiaga et al (Gorostiaga, Granados, Ibanez, Gonzalez-Badillo, & Izquierdo, 2006) have found significant relationships between muscle

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