Freeman Brock W, Young Warren B, Talpey Scott W, Smyth Andrew M, Pane Calvin L, Carlon Todd A
School of Health Sciences and Psychology, Faculty of Health, Federation University Australia, Ballarat, Australia -
School of Health Sciences and Psychology, Faculty of Health, Federation University Australia, Ballarat, Australia.
J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 2019 Jul;59(7):1119-1125. doi: 10.23736/S0022-4707.18.08703-0.
Hamstring strain injuries (HSI) are among the most common injuries in field-based team sports with a high-speed running component. The implementation of the Nordic hamstring exercise (NHE) is a well-documented method of improving eccentric hamstring strength to mitigate the risk of HSI occurrence. Sprint training is specific to the injury mechanism and is thought to activate the hamstrings through maximal eccentric contractions. The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of sprint training and the NHE on eccentric hamstring strength and sprint performance.
Twenty-eight participants (mean±SD age=16.21±1.34 years; height=1.75m±0.10m; body mass=68.5kg±12.1kg) completed an eccentric hamstring strength assessment and 40m sprint to assess acceleration and maximum speed. Participants were randomly allocated to either a NHE training or sprint training group. Two sessions per week for four-weeks of training was performed with baseline testing procedures repeated in the week following the intervention. Perceptions of soreness were recorded following the warm-up in each training session.
Both the NHE (effect size=0.39, P<0.05) and sprint training (effect size=0.29, P<0.05) groups displayed significant gains in eccentric hamstring strength. The NHE group reported trivial improvements in sprint performance, whilst the sprint training group experienced a moderate improvement, specifically in maximum speed (ES=0.83 Moderate). Sprint training also produced greater perceptions of soreness than the NHE following a four-week training intervention, specifically before the start of the last session (P<0.05).
These findings indicate that sprint training had a beneficial effect for both eccentric hamstring strength and sprint performance, whilst also producing greater soreness than the NHE following the final training session. It was concluded that a four-week block of maximum speed training may have both an injury prevention and performance enhancement benefit.
腘绳肌拉伤（HSI）是有高速奔跑环节的团队运动中最常见的损伤之一。北欧腘绳肌练习（NHE）的实施是一种有充分文献记载的提高腘绳肌离心力量以降低HSI发生风险的方法。短跑训练与损伤机制相关，并且被认为通过最大离心收缩来激活腘绳肌。本研究的目的是比较短跑训练和NHE对腘绳肌离心力量和短跑成绩的影响。
28名参与者（平均±标准差年龄 = 16.21±1.34岁；身高 = 1.75m±0.10m；体重 = 68.5kg±12.1kg）完成了腘绳肌离心力量评估以及40米短跑以评估加速度和最高速度。参与者被随机分配到NHE训练组或短跑训练组。每周进行两次，为期四周的训练，并在干预后的一周重复基线测试程序。在每次训练课的热身之后记录酸痛感。
NHE组（效应量 = 0.39，P<0.05）和短跑训练组（效应量 = 0.29，P<0.05）的腘绳肌离心力量均有显著提高。NHE组报告短跑成绩有轻微改善，而短跑训练组有中度改善，特别是在最高速度方面（效应量 = 0.83，中度）。在为期四周的训练干预后，短跑训练也比NHE产生了更大的酸痛感，特别是在最后一节课开始前（P<0.05）。
这些结果表明，短跑训练对腘绳肌离心力量和短跑成绩都有有益影响，同时在最后一次训练课后比NHE产生更大的酸痛感。得出的结论是，为期四周的最高速度训练可能对预防损伤和提高成绩都有益处。
