In a study out of Norway, researchers examined whether kicking with elastic resistance during warm-up could initiate postactivation potentiation (PAP), and thereby positively influence kinematics and performance on subsequent explosive roundhouse kicking. Five women and 11 men (n = 16) with a background in kickboxing (n = 10) or taekwondo (n =6) performed 2 warm-up strategies with 3 subsequent test kicks 5-8 minutes after a PAP-inducing exercise. Kicking performance, defined as roundhouse kicking velocity with the foot, was measured using 3D motion capture (500 Hz) with a 15 marker lower-body 3D model. In addition, electromyography of the prime movers—vastus lateralis, vastus medialis, and rectus femoris muscles—was measured to confirm the presence of PAP.
The team found that kicking velocity of the foot increased by 3.3% after performing a warming-up strategy including kicking with elastic resistance (P = 0.009, η = 0.32) in this group of trained martial arts practitioners. Increased muscle activity was recorded in vastus medialis (35.2%, P = 0.05, η = 0.18) and rectus femoris (43.9%, P = 0.04, η = 0.20). The researchers concluded that these findings indicate that performing a warm-up strategy including kicking with elastic resistance can have a positive effect on kicking performance in a roundhouse kick and could be a beneficial addition to a precompetition warm-up protocol.
Source: Aandahl HS, Von Heimburg E, Van den Tillaar R. Effect of postactivation potentiation induced by elastic resistance on kinematics and performance in a roundhouse kick of trained martial arts practitioners. J Strength Cond Res. 2018;32(4): 990-996, 2018
