Stretch–shortening cycle analysis: acute effect of post-activation potentiation on knee muscles during counter movement jump and instep kicking in soccer female players

The present research is aimed to determine the acute effect of post-activation potentiation (PAP) with squat and leg extension machine, static, dynamic, and no stretching warm up on stretch–shortening cycle (SSC) of knee extensors muscles during countermovement jump (CMJ) and soccer instep kicking (SIK) in female soccer players.

Thirty semi-professional female soccer players with a mean age of 24.5 ± 2.63 years, were chosen randomly. Then, during non-successive days, all groups performed one of the warm-up programs regularly on working days (static, dynamic and no-stretching and PAPs). Then they performed CMJ and SIK in order to measure the eccentric knee angular velocity (EKAV), concentric knee angular velocity (CKAV), knee extension power (KEP), jump height (JH), and ball velocity (BV) through biomechanical evaluation.

Findings showed that there was a significant increase in EKAV, CKAV, KEP, HJ, and BV after warm up PAPs compared to other methods in both CMJ and SIK.

Based on obtained results, it can be said that among the warm up methods and their effects on SSC of the knee for the extensor muscles, both PAP methods were the most effective methods in improving and increasing EKAV, CKAV, KEP, JH, BV during CMJ and SIK in professional female soccer players.