College
College of Health Professions
Date of Last Revision
2024-06-03 12:59:20
Major
Exercise Science
Honors Course
EXER 430
Number of Credits
2
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science
Date of Expected Graduation
Spring 2024
Abstract
Collegiate dancers require a large range of motion throughout all joints for performance success. Previous research has shown static (STA) stretching to be most effective at improving flexibility (Chaabene et al. 2019), due to this factor, warmups for dance are primarily based on STA stretching to allow dancers to reach their maximum flexibility. Previous research has also shown that STA stretching before activity can have negative effects on an athlete’s power output, and a large amount of power is essential for dance. PURPOSE: Determine the effect of STA and dynamic (DYN) stretching on lower extremity power and flexibility in collegiate dancers. METHODS: Subjects (N=10) were recruited from The University of Akron Dance Team. Data collection involved 3 conditions with different stretching protocols. DYN warm-up, STA warm-up, or no warm-up (CON) were completed before each independent condition of data collection. Biodex testing was performed to assess individual power output of right and left knee extension and flexion and a flexibility test was performed to test hamstring flexibility. Paired t-tests were used to assess significance. Significance was set at p< 0.05. RESULTS: Significance (pCONCLUSION: There was a functional difference in lower extremity power output for all power measures, but only some to a statistically significant level. Previous research has demonstrated similar power output results in dancers following DYN vs. STA warmups where no significant difference was observed (Vlieg et al., 2019). The results contradicted previous research which resulted in a significant increase of flexibility from DYN versus STA stretching in dancers (D’Elia et al., 2023). Future research should analyze flexibility and power output in dancers after being accustomed to dynamic warmups for a longer period, should analyze a different group of athletes, and analyze results after performing warmups of equal length.
Research Sponsor
Ronald Otterstetter
First Reader
Stephanie Davis-Dieringer
Second Reader
Rachele Kappler
Honors Faculty Advisor
Stacey Buser
Proprietary and/or Confidential Information
No
Recommended Citation
George, Meloney, "The Effects of Static Versus Dynamic Stretching on Lower Extremity Power Output and Flexibility in Dancers" (2024). Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects. 1784.
https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/honors_research_projects/1784