Validity and Reliability of the Seated Medicine Ball Throw as a Measure of Upper Body Power in Older Women.

Strand, KL, Ly, AS, Barry, SS, Liscano, JA, Trebotich, TL, Martin-Diala, C, Martin, E, and Signorile, JF. Validity and reliability of the seated medicine ball throw as a measure of upper body power in older women. J Strength Cond Res 37(4): 902-908, 2023-In women, aging is associated with diminishing upper body power, which may increase the risk of falls and fall-related injury; however, the validity and reliability of clinical tests to evaluate upper body power need to be confirmed. The seated medicine ball throw (SMBT) is an upper body performance test used to monitor muscle function among older individuals. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the validity and test-retest reliability of the SMBT in older women. Thirty-five women (age = 75.15 ± 6.39 years) participated in this study. Subjects performed SMBT trials using common ball masses (SMBT 4lb and SMBT 3kg ) over 3 sessions. Familiarization with the SMBT and chest press 1 repetition maximum (CP 1RM ) was provided on the first day. On day 2, subjects repeated the tests, but data were recorded. On day 3, SMBT was retested followed by an evaluation of chest press peak power (CP PP ) values at 30-80% of CP 1RM . Significant correlations ( p ≤ 0.05) were found between the CP PP and SMBT 4lb ( r = 0.775, p < 0.001) and SMBT 3kg ( r = 0.734, p < 0.001), and SMBT distance showed expected declines with age ( r = -0.724 to -0.626, p < 0.001), demonstrating its validity. High reliability between testing days was found, and Bland-Altman plots showed few points that fell outside the limits of agreement. In conclusion, the SMBT is a valid and highly reliable tool that can be used by health professionals to monitor deficits in upper body muscular power to improve treatment protocols in older women.