Biomechanics Commons^™

Swimmers’ Upper Trapezius Activation During Shoulder Abduction Compared To Non-Overhead Athletes, Kendra Graham

Senior Honors Projects

Overhead sports such as baseball, tennis, volleyball, softball and swimming are known to cause rotator cuff imbalances and injuries. These injuries are typically caused by the repeated use of “throwing motion,” where the humerus is externally rotated and shoulder abducted and elevated. Previous research has shown that the function of the upper trapezius muscle in overhead athletes is likely to have improper activation (timing, magnitude) during various shoulder motions and/or activities of daily living. Swimmers are especially susceptible to this improper activation due to the use of their upper limbs in a repeated throwing motion. The added resistance of the …

Ground Contact Time Imbalances Strongly Related To Impaired Running Economy, Dustin P. Joubert, Nicholas A. Guerra, Eric J. Jones, Erica G. Knowles, Aaron D. Piper

Faculty Publications

Running economy (RE) is defined as the oxygen consumption (VO2) or caloric unit cost required to move at a specific velocity and is an important performance marker. Ground contact time (GCT) has been associated with RE; however, it has not been established how GCT imbalances between feet impact RE. Purpose: Determine the relationship between cadence, GCT, and GCT imbalances and RE. Methods: 11 NCAA Division I distance runners (7 male) completed a graded exercise test on a treadmill to determine lactate threshold (LT) and VO2max. Body composition was also assessed via DEXA. Subjects ran with a heart rate monitor capable …

Changes In Reach To Eat Movement Control After Intensive Training For Children With Unilateral Cerebral Palsy, Yaching Hung, Aryeh D. Spingarn

Publications and Research

Ya Ching Hung EdD. and Aryeh Spingarn EP-C, CSCS, EIM-Level 2 Queens College, City University of New York Department of Family, Nutrition, and Exercise Sciences, Changes in Reach to Eat Movement Control After Intensive Training for Children with Unilateral Cerebral Palsy. Purpose: The current study compares the effects of an intervention on children with Congenital Hemiplegia during a simple eating task using kinematic analyses. Previous studies looked at simple bimanual tasks such as opening a drawer; no studies examined the effects of intensive training on unimanual reach, grasp, and eat movement control. Methods: 20 children with Unilateral Spastic Cerebral Palsy …

The Runsmart Training Program: Effect On Oxygen Consumption And Lower Extremity Biomechanics During Running, Jennifer Bogulski, Steven Gonser, Doug Bush, Raechel Bugner, Lindsay Clark, Lisa Farrell, Kristen Swanson, Michael Ross

Articles & Book Chapters

As recreational running continues to gain popularity, more individuals are seeking ways to improve running performance. RunSmart is a running intervention program designed to enhance a runner’s form. In addition to correcting flaws in a runner’s form, RunSmart offers the opportunity for runners to continue a regular regimen while slowly integrating changes in form. The purpose of this case series was twofold: to determine if the RunSmart program coincides with improvements in oxygen consumption (VO₂), a variable often associated with better running performance times, and to evaluate the RunSmart program in regard to enhancing gait biomechanics. Five recreational …

Biomechanical Investigation Of Elite Place-Kicking, Chase M. Pfeifer

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Many studies aim to understand the fundamentals of kicking commonly displayed by soccer players [4,6,10,16,17,18,24,25,28,29,30,34,36,38,40]. Of those studies, most are limited to a two-dimensional (2D) analysis using high-speed cameras for position tracking or utilizing electromyography to observe the activity of select muscles [4,6,18,25,29,36]. The few studies that investigate kicking using a three-dimensional (3D) model are limited in their position tracking capabilities and focus mainly on joint flexion potentials and foot speed.

This dissertation is a comprehensive biomechanical analysis (kinematic and EMG) of the field-goal place-kicking techniques of four elite kickers in American football. Data were compared and contrasted with ball …