Baseline Assessments of Strength and Balance Performance and Bilateral Asymmetries in Collegiate Athletes

J Strength Cond Res. 2019 Nov;33(11):3015-3029. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000002687.

Abstract

Dai, B, Layer, J, Vertz, C, Hinshaw, T, Cook, R, Li, Y, and Sha, Z. Baseline assessments of strength and balance performance and bilateral asymmetries in collegiate athletes. J Strength Cond Res 33(11): 3015-3029, 2019-Injuries to upper and lower extremities comprise more than 70% of the total injuries in collegiate athletes. Establishing normative data of upper and lower extremity strength and balance may help guide postinjury rehabilitation and return-to-play decisions. The purposes of the current study were to develop the normative data of performance and bilateral asymmetries during 4 upper and lower extremity strength and balance tests in collegiate athletes and to quantify the correlations between strength and balance performance and bilateral asymmetries. A total of 304 male and 195 female Division I athletes from 14 sports performed a maximum push-up test to assess upper extremity strength, a countermovement jump test to assess lower extremity strength, an upper extremity reaching test to assess upper extremity balance, and a lower extremity reaching test to assess lower extremity balance. Bilateral ground reaction forces were collected for the push-up and jump tests. Reaching distances were measured for the 2 balance tests. Bilateral asymmetries were generally less than 10%. Significant sports effects were observed for all 5 performance variables (p < 0.001) but not for asymmetry variables (p ≥ 0.36). Weak correlations were found between strength and balance performance and asymmetries (r < 0.3). Normative data are sex and sports specific in collegiate athletes. Increased asymmetries could be more individualized rather than sex and sports specific. When return-to-play decisions are made, athletes following injuries need to demonstrate less than 10% of asymmetries to be consistent with the normative data. Strength and balance should be evaluated and improved with specific focuses.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Athletes
  • Athletic Injuries / rehabilitation
  • Athletic Performance*
  • Exercise Test
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Lower Extremity
  • Male
  • Muscle Strength*
  • Postural Balance*
  • Return to Sport
  • Sports / classification
  • Upper Extremity
  • Young Adult