For this week’s education session, we focused on agility, change-of-direction movements. Some that we performed were bounding (lateral), hopping, and jumping. Though these three movements can be easily confused with each other, there is a difference between them. Bounding is jumping off one foot and landing on the other, hopping is jumping off one leg and landing on that same leg, and jumping is leaving the ground off both feet and landing on both feet.
So, the difference is in the landing mechanics.
Within the last year, I have taken a special interest in ACL (anterior crucial ligament) prehabilitation and rehabilitation, as well as the trends with male and female athletes when it comes to injuries of the ACL. With this said, the opportunity to analyze each of the interns’ landing mechanics was a valuable one. With more than “3 million youth currently registered to take part in organized soccer within the United States, and participation growing approximately 20% every year” (DiStefano, Padua, DiStefano, & Marshall, 2009), it is vital to know what we can do as professionals in the strength and conditioning field to prevent these young athletic careers from ending prematurely.
Landing mechanics entered this conversation when it was found that “approximately 70% of all ACL injuries are the result of a noncontact mechanism of injury and usually occur as an individual is planting, cutting, or jumping” (DiStefano et al., 2009). My immediate reaction when reading this is to help these athletes by developing their initial strength, then their mechanics. In turn, this will help avoid the sad situations when kids and young adults either miss entire seasons because of injury, or worse, are no longer able to play sports at all.
Int his same publication, DiStefano, et al. stated that “specific movement patterns commonly occurring during ACL and lower extremity injury include knee valgus, excessive leg rotation, and decreased knee flexion”. Time and time again, in the Noreastern weight room, we correct jumping, squat, and single-leg squat form because knees often go valgus during the transition between the eccentric and concentric portions of those movements. A cause of this could not only be the lack of strength in the gluteus muscles, but also the inability to fire those muscles effectively. After all, the gluteals are external rotators, which would protect the knee from the vulnerable valgus position. This is almost always the case with the female athletes, and rarely the case with our male athletes, validating the data that says ACL injury rates are “2 to 5 times greater in female than male athletes in comparable sports” (DiStefano et al., 2009).
During our education session, I was told to perform a jump with a counter movement. I performed the task how I thought would be correct and, though my general movements were correct, it was pointed out to me that my knees went valgus as I concluded the eccentric movement and began the concentric. I was unaware that I had this tendency and now know that I should engage in ACL prevention exercises myself in order to avoid a serious injury in the future.
On another note, I would have never known of this tendency of mine had we not participated in this education session, as it served as a make-shift PPE (pre-participation examination) for me. This leads me to another point. DiStefano et al., state that “none of the research investigating injury prevention exercise interventions has incorporated an initial assessment to identify specific deficiencies for an individual”. Athletes should always, always be evaluated before and after competition have commenced, as well as before training. This is a great way to gather information concerning where an athlete is starting, in order to tailor a program to their specific needs.
DiStefano, L. J., Padua, D. A., DiStefano, M. J., & Marshall, S. W. (2009). Influence of Age, Sex, Technique, and Exercise Program on Movement Patterns After an Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury Prevention Program in Youth Soccer Players. American Journal of Sports Medicine, 37, 495-505.