Date Approved
8-7-2025
Graduate Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Engineering (M.S.E.)
Degree Program
School of Engineering
First Advisor
Dr. Blake Ashby
Second Advisor
Dr. Yunju Lee
Third Advisor
Dr. Sanjivan Manoharan
Academic Year
2024/2025
Abstract
Previous jumping studies have proven that jumping with arm motion enhances performance compared to jumping without arm motion. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of arm motion on the muscle contributions of the lower extremities during the standing long jump using muscle-actuated modeling informed by experimental data. Specifically investigating how arm motion enhances performance at the muscle level and how the muscle contributions of the lower extremities differ in jumps with and without arm motion. Three male and three female participants performed three jumps with arms and three jumps without arms. The longest jumps with and without arms were further analyzed using inverse kinematics, inverse dynamics, residual reduction algorithm, static optimization, and muscle analysis to determine muscle forces, activations, and lengths. Muscle work was then calculated and compared for jumps with and without arms; muscles were then ranked by the difference in work done between the two jumps. It was determined that across the six participants, the lower body muscles generated 37.2 J more work in jumps with arms than in jumps without arms. The functional muscle groups with the largest difference in work between the two jumps were the gluteals, quadriceps, and plantarflexors across all participants. The results showed that while the addition of arm motion adds energy and work done during the standing long jump, the lower body generates more work in jumps with arms than when compared to jumps without arms. Muscles within the lower body produce more work between the two jumps, specifically in the functional muscle group that is responsible for extending the hip, the gluteals. Seven of the 12 muscle actuators that had the largest difference in work between jumps had higher average activations in the last second before takeoff in jumps with arms. With these seven muscles, there was not enough evidence to conclude whether and how much holdback is occurring during jumps without arms. This further understanding of muscle contributions can aid in the understanding of training athletes to enhance athletic performance, as well as in diagnostic and treatment approaches to restore mobility in patients.
ScholarWorks Citation
Douglas, Abigail, "Effect of Arm Movement on Lower Body Muscle Contributions to Standing Long Jump Performance" (2025). Masters Theses. 1155.
https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/theses/1155
