Is Vertical Jump Height an Indicator of Athletes' Power Output in Different Sport Modalities?

Abstract

Kons, RL, Ache-Dias, J, Detanico, D, Barth, J, and Dal Pupo, J. Is vertical jump height an indicator of athletes' power output in different sports modalities? J Strength Cond Res 32(3): 708-715, 2018-This study aimed to identify whether the ratio standard is adequate for the scaling of peak power output (PPO) for body mass (BM) in athletes of different sports and to verify classification agreement for athletes involved in different sports using PPO scaled for BM and jump height (JH). One hundred and twenty-four male athletes divided into 3 different groups-combat sports, team sports, and runners-participated in this study. Participants performed the countermovement jump on a force plate. Peak power output and JH were calculated from the vertical ground reaction force. We found different allometric exponents for each modality, allowing the use of the ratio standard for team sports. For combat sports and runners, the ratio standard was not considered adequate, and therefore, a specific allometric exponent for these 2 groups was found. Significant correlations between adjusted PPO for BM (PPOADJ) and JH were found for all modalities, but it was higher for runners (r = 0.81) than team and combat sports (r = 0.63 and 0.65, respectively). Moderate agreement generated by the PPOADJ and JH was verified in team sports (k = 0.47) and running (k = 0.55) and fair agreement in combat sports (k = 0.29). We conclude that the ratio standard seems to be suitable only for team sports; for runners and combat sports, an allometric model seems adequate. The use of JH as an indicator of power output may be considered reasonable only for runners.

Jump height is a poor indicator of lower limb maximal power output: theoretical demonstration, experimental evidence and practical solutions

“…However, allometric scaling is a correction method that is also based on assumptions, and may not apply correctly in heterogeneous populations, and/or in the case of very specific body composition and especially skeletal muscle mass as developed through years of specific training in elite athletes. Kons et al recently showed that the improvement of correlations between jump height and Pmax through allometric scaling was highly sport-specific [33]. Interestingly, Fig.…”

“…1) include: variable hPO values among athletes, heterogeneous individual Fv profiles and optimal profiles, and in turn optimal load that differs from body mass for some athletes (which was the case for most rugby players). Finally, two recent studies show that athlete's absolute lower limb power output capability could not be appropriately categorized or estimated, in most sports, from jump height measurements [32,33]. Among the practical solutions to solve this issue, the current authors propose to use estimations based on regressions, and allometric scaling of raw, absolute power values.…”

“…For instance, scaling Pmax to body mass (SJ) or body mass and countermovement depth (CMJ) at the power 1 resulted in markedly increased correlation coefficients with jump height [11]. This led to researchers recommending the use of allometric scaling to more accurately estimate Pmax from jump height [30,32,33]. In particular, Markovic and Jaric [30] proposed that the most justified and accurate scaling was when muscle power was proportional to body mass raised to the power of 0.67 (and even more accurately 0.75 as discussed by these authors) to account for the theory of geometric similarity, that states that some physiological features of mammals bodies (e.g.…”

Allometric Scale Corrects Performance Outcomes in Special Judo Fitness Test

“…Therefore, the correction of BM variations may be advisable if a judo trainer, coach, or athlete is interested in a straightforward comparison between athletes with different BMs. In this regard, a traditional mathematical approach, such as the socalled allometric exponent adjustment, may be helpful [10,11].…”

“…For example, Abad et al [12] reported that the 10 km running performance was better predicted through a model combining peak treadmill running velocity and running economic data allometrically adjusted. Actually, a recent study suggested that the allometric model seems to be a more straightforward strategy for performance analysis in combat sports [11]. In this sense, one may hypothesize that allometric exponents further correct BM variations-derived distortions in SJTF performance outcomes.…”