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Title of Submission
Vertical Stiffness During Landing: Predicting Fatigue in Female Soccer Players Through Ground Reaction Forces
Degree Program
Kinesiology, MS
Major Advisor Name
Tyler Brown
Type of Submission
Scholarly Poster
Abstract
Athletes may increase leg stiffness to safely land when fatigued. Thirty-one females had vertical leg stiffness quantified during five 30cm drop landings immediately prior to and following a competitive soccer season. During each landing, vertical stiffness was calculated as maximal vertical ground reaction force multiplied by the inverse of center of mass vertical displacement, and submitted to a RM ANOVA to test the main effect and interaction between time (pre vs. post) and fatigue (starter vs. non-starter). Vertical stiffness was not larger with the cumulative fatigue of a soccer season (p=0.129), or for athletes playing greater minutes (p=0.392).