Effect of Arm Swing Direction on Forward and Backward Jump Performance Based on Biomechanical Analysis

Previous studies have examined the role of arm swing for various types of jumping technique, but none have been found to study about the gender differences in term of the role of arm swing on forward and backward jump. This study aimed to compare the jumping performance between male and female for forward and backward jump. Seven male and seven female subjects performed four trials of forward and backward jump with (FJA, BJA) and without arm swing (FJ, BJ) respectively. Qualisys Track Manager System, EEGO Sports, Visual3D and MATLAB software was used to record and analyze the performance. According to the result, the triceps brachii muscle is the most active muscle compared to other muscles during jumping. The normalized vGRF showed significant correlation with jump height when jumping forward and backward (p<0.01). The arm swing enhanced the jumping performance by increasing the jump height. Males demonstrated greater vGRF and jump height than females. When jump with arm swing, the left knee flexion angle of males increased whereas females decreased. These findings concluded there is different between males and females during jumping.