Barbell Squat Relative Strength as an Identifier for Lower Extremity Injury in Collegiate Athletes

Case, MJ, Knudson, DV, and Downey, DL. Barbell squat relative strength as an identifier for lower extremity injury in collegiate athletes. J Strength Cond Res 34(5): 1249-1253, 2020-The aim of the study was to determine the efficacy of using the relative strength level of Division I athletes in One...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of strength and conditioning research Vol. 34; no. 5; p. 1249
Main Authors Case, Marcus J, Knudson, Duane V, Downey, Darcy L
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 01.05.2020
Subjects
Adult
Athletes
Female
Humans
Lower Extremity - injuries
Lower Extremity - physiology
Male
Muscle Strength - physiology
Posture
Resistance Training - methods
Retrospective Studies
Sports - physiology
Online AccessGet more information

Cover

More Information
Summary:Case, MJ, Knudson, DV, and Downey, DL. Barbell squat relative strength as an identifier for lower extremity injury in collegiate athletes. J Strength Cond Res 34(5): 1249-1253, 2020-The aim of the study was to determine the efficacy of using the relative strength level of Division I athletes in One repetition maximum (1RM) barbell back squat as an identifier of seasonal lower extremity (LE) injury. One repetition maximum back squat (kg) and reported LE injuries were retrospectively collected for Division I male football (n = 46), female volleyball and softball athletes (n = 25). Maximum preseason relative (body mass normalized) back squat strength values were compared with 2 analyses of variance (p < 0.05) between injured and uninjured male (football) and female athletes (softball & volleyball). Relative back squat strength was significantly lower in injured athletes than uninjured athletes in both men (F = 6.03, p = 0.02) and women (F = 4.68, p = 0.04) with a moderate to large effect size (g = 0.86-0.85). These data indicate the potential of 1RM back squat relative strength serving as one tool in multi-factor preseason screening for LE injury risk in these sports. Male athletes with relative squat strength below 2.2 and female athletes below 1.6 in these sports could be more susceptible to LE injury over a season. Strength professionals should consider using body mass normalized 1RM back squats as a screening tool for seasonal LE injury risk in college athletes.
ISSN:1064-8011
1533-4287
DOI:10.1519/JSC.0000000000003554