Postural stability in athletes: The role of age, sex, performance level, and athlete shoe features
The effects of different factors—such as age, sex, performance level, and athletic shoe features—on postural balance in athletes remain unclear. The main objective of our study is to identify the features of postural stability in athletes of different age, sex, performance level, and using different types of athletic shoes. This study assessed postural stability in athletes (n = 936, 6-47 years) in a normal bipedal stance with eyes open (EO) and eyes closed (EC). Postural stability was evaluated based on the center of pressure (COP), sway area (AS), and velocity (VCP) while standing on a stabiloplatform. Children (6-12 years) and teen athletes (13-17 years) showed reduced AS-EO (p < 0.01) and VCP-EO (p < 0.01) compared to control (n = 225, 7-30 years). In male and female athletes aged 18+, only VCP-EC was lower versus control. In females (13-17 and 18+), VCP-EO and EC were lower than in males (p < 0.05). Only in the Shooting group, the athletes` performance levels had an effect on VCP-EO (p = 0.020). Long use of rigid athletic shoes with stiff ankle support was associated with reduced posture stability. Postural stability in athletes was mostly influenced by the athlete`s age, and, to a lesser extent, by their sex, performance level, and athlete shoe features.
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| Subjects: |
posture
stability
athlete
age
male
female
sex
performance capacity
sport
shoe
basketball
handball
biathlon
shooting
archery
apparatus gymnastics
rhythmic gymnastics
tennis
boxing
alpine skiing
snowboarding
table tennis
figure skating
soccer
rowing
canoeing
wrestling
judo
speed skating
curling
land hockey
cross-country skiing
running
trampolining
Switzerland
training science
sports facilities and sports equipment
endurance sports
strength and speed sports
technical sports
sport games
|
|---|---|
| Notations: | training science sports facilities and sports equipment endurance sports strength and speed sports technical sports sport games |
| Published in: | Sports |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2020
|
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3390/sports8060089 |
| Volume: | 8 |
| Issue: | 6 |
| Pages: | 89 |
| Document types: | article |
| Level: | advanced |