Home > Research > Publications & Outputs > Improved ankle mobility following a 4-week trai...

Electronic data

  • Howe et al_2020_JSCR Manuscript

    Rights statement: The published version is available at doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000003717

    Accepted author manuscript, 511 KB, PDF document

    Available under license: CC BY-NC: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

Links

Text available via DOI:

View graph of relations

Improved ankle mobility following a 4-week training program affects landing mechanics: a randomized controlled trial

Research output: Contribution to Journal/MagazineJournal articlepeer-review

Published
Close
<mark>Journal publication date</mark>31/07/2022
<mark>Journal</mark>Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research
Issue number7
Volume36
Number of pages9
Pages (from-to)1875-1883
Publication StatusPublished
Early online date20/07/20
<mark>Original language</mark>English

Abstract

This study examined the effects of a 4-week ankle-mobility intervention on landing mechanics. Twenty participants with restricted ankle dorsiflexion range of motion (DF ROM) were allocated to either a strength training only (n = 9) or a strength training and ankle mobility program (n = 11). Participants performed a weight-bearing lunge test and bilateral drop-landings before and following the intervention. Normalized peak vertical ground reaction force (vGRF), time to peak vGRF and loading rate were calculated, alongside sagittal-plane initial contact angles, peak angles and sagittal-plane joint displacement for the ankle, knee and hip. Frontal-plane projection angles were also calculated. Following the intervention, only the strength and mobility group improved ankle DF ROM (mean difference = 4.1°, effect size (ES) = 1.00, P = 0.002). A one-way analysis of covariance found group effects for ankle joint angle at initial contact (P = 0.045), ankle (P < 0.001) and hip joint angle at peak flexion (P = 0.041), and sagittal-plane ankle (P < 0.001) and hip joint displacement (P = 0.024) during bilateral drop-landings. Post-hoc analysis revealed that the strength and mobility group landed with greater ankle plantar flexion at initial contact (mean difference = 1.4 ± 2.0˚, ES = 0.46) and ankle dorsiflexion at peak flexion (mean difference = 6.3 ± 2.9˚, ES = 0.74) following the intervention, resulting in greater ankle joint displacement (mean difference = 7.7 ± 4.0˚, ES = 1.00). However, the strength training only group landed with increased peak hip flexion (mean difference = 14.4 ± 11.0˚, ES = 0.70) and hip joint displacement (mean difference = 8.0 ± 6.6˚, ES = 0.44) during post-testing. The findings suggest that changes in landing strategies following the performance of a strength training program are specific to whether restrictions in ankle mobility are considered as part of the intervention.