An Acute Bout of Self-Myofascial Release Does Not Affect Drop Jump Performance despite an Increase in Ankle Range of Motion

Evaluating the effect of sports compression tights on balance, sprinting, jumping and change of direction tasks

Compression garments are commonly used during athletic tasks. However, the effect of compression garments on balance, sprinting, jumping and change of direction performance requires further investigation. In the current study, 24 recreationally active participants (12 males, 12 females, age 27 ± 3 years) completed single-leg balance tasks, countermovement jumps, drop jumps, 10 m straight line sprints and change of direction tasks wearing either compression tights (COMP) or regular exercise tights (CON). There was a significant main effect of the condition for 10 m sprint time (p = 0.03, d = -0.18) and change of direction time (p = 0.03, d = -0.20) in favour of COMP. In addition, there was a significant, small difference (p = 0.05, d = -0.30) in ellipse area and a small (p = 0.16, d = 0.21) difference in balance time in favour of COMP during a single-leg balance task. There were no significant differences between trials for any of the other balance or jump tests (p > 0.05). The application of compression tights during exercise may offer small benefits to the performance of balance and change of direction tasks, though these benefits are likely within the typical error of measurement for the tests used.

Acute effects of foam rolling and dynamic stretching on angle-specific change of direction ability, flexibility and reactive strength in male basketball players

The purpose of our study was to determine the acute effects of dynamic stretching (DS), foam rolling (FR) and foam rolling combined with dynamic stretching (Combo) protocols on angle-specific change of direction (COD) ability, drop jump (DJ) performance and flexibility. Using a counterbalance crossover study design, eleven male basketball collegiate players (20.7 ± 0.6 years) were randomly assigned to one of the four protocols - control (CON), DS, FR, Combo - for each session, for a total of four sessions. A more aggressive foam cylinder with raised nodules, which is thought to be effective in stimulating the deep layer of muscle tissue, was used to observe for changes in their performance during sit and reach (SAR), DJ and COD tasks in 45 and 180 degrees. One-way repeated measures ANOVA was used to identify differences of each variable separately between interventions. The SAR after three interventions compared to the CON was significantly improved (F (3,30) = 5.903, P = 0.003, η2 = 0.371). In the 505 test, both limbs failed to show a significant improvement in COD deficit. The non-dominant limb showed a significant improvement of 6.4% after FR when performing the Y-shaped agility (F (3,30) = 4.962, P = 0.0065 < 0.05, η2 = 0.332). In the DJ, the reactive strength index and contact time changed significantly by 17.5% and -17.5% (η2 = 0.518, η2 = 0.571), respectively, immediately after FR. The current research suggested that FR may have an enhancing effect on COD speed in a 45° cutting task and neuromuscular function, while having the potential to improve non-dominant limb deficits in both COD tasks. In contrast, the Combo warm-up protocol did not produce a cumulative effect, suggesting the need for coaches to remain cautious about excessive warm-up duration.

Acute Effect of Short Intensive Self-Myofascial Release on Jump Performance in Amateur Athletes: A Randomized Cross-Over Study

Searching for effective methods to maximize physical performance that can be utilized during warm-ups is challenging in modern sports. This study aimed to investigate the effect of a short and intensive self-myofascial release (SI-SMR) on jumps in amateur, collegiate athletes. The study sample consists of 30 subjects with an average age of 21.8 years. The tests conducted included a squat jump (SJ), countermovement jump (CMJ), and drop jump (DJ). In the first week, half of the participants performed a standardized warm-up with additional short (15 s per lower limb muscle group) and intensive (20 reps/15 s) SMR and then performed jump tests. The other half performed a standard warm-up. The following week the groups switched interventions. The results revealed a tendency for all jump test parameters (height, force, and power), the reactive strength index, and stiffness to improve with SI-SMR, but the differences were small and insignificant. A dependent t-test for paired samples revealed that only SJ height improvement (+0.96 ± 2.63 cm) reached statistical significance (p = 0.04), but the small ES (ES = 0.14) could have attenuated this result. When a two-way mixed ANOVA was applied, the differences were insignificant. SI-SMR was ineffective in the direct improvement of jump performance. Although SI-SMR had no adverse effects, athletes should focus on specific preparations for sports competitions instead of using an SI-SMR protocol.

Acute effects of vibration foam rolling and local vibration during warm-up on athletic performance in tennis players

Athletes are currently fond of vibration foam rollers (VFRs) and commercial portable vibration percussion devices (PVPDs). It is still unknown whether using these devices during warm-up has an immediate impact on athletic performance. A randomized block design was used in this study. The acute effects of VFR and PVPD on tennis players’ athletic performance during warm-up were compared. For the countermovement jump (CMJ), reactive strength index (RSI), and hexagon test (HT), the difference in performance between all interventions was significant (p = 0.007–0.034, η²_p = 0.266–0.364). Only those who received VFR had significantly different CMJ and HT results when compared to the control group (CMJ height = 53.18 ±4.49 cm, p = 0.03, d = 1.26; HT time = 10.73 ±0.4 s, p = 0.03, d = 1.12). Participants’ RSI values were significantly different after VFR (RSI = 2.01 ±0.11 cm·mm^–1, p = 0.012, d = 1.76) and PVPD (RSI = 1.99 ±0.11 cm·mm^–1, p = 0.025, d = 1.52) compared to the control group. Therefore, when using VFR and PVPD as part of warm-up protocols for tennis players of varying skill levels, VFR could have an immediate positive effect on power, reactive strength, and change of direction performance, while PVPD could immediately improve reactive strength performance.