Countermovement vertical jump with drop step is higher than without in collegiate football players.
The vertical jump is a performance test commonly used to assess explosive power and predict athletic ability. Typically, the vertical jump is performed with a countermovement from a stationary stance. We hypothesized that taking a quick step back before initiating the jump, known as the drop-step technique, would result in a higher vertical jump. The purpose of this study was to compare countermovement vertical jumps (CMJs) done from the stationary-stance position to CMJs performed with the drop-step with trained athletes. NCAA Division I football players (N = 56) performed 3 trials each of stationary-stance and drop-step CMJs in a random order. A paired t test revealed that a significantly (p < 0.01) higher jump height was achieved with the drop-step CMJ (69.3 +/- 8.0 cm) compared to the stationary-stance CMJ (66.5 +/- 8.0 cm). The 2 jump conditions were highly related (r = 0.95), and the rank order of the athletes tended to be similar from 1 condition to the other (rho = 0.94). Trial-to-trial reliability was similar for each condition (coefficient of variation [CV] = 3.5% stationary stance; CV = 4.1% drop step). It is important to standardize CMJ testing procedures because a significant difference in the height achieved exists between the stationary-stance and drop-step techniques.
Department of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation, Utah State University, Logan, Utah.
Vincent
V
Brodt
Dale R
DR
Wagner
Edward M
EM
Heath
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D054874:Athletic Performance / Q000502:physiology; D005080:Exercise Test; D005538:Football / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D035002:Lower Extremity / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D053580:Muscle Strength / Q000502:physiology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D014495:Universities