IMPULSE GENERATION DURING JUMPING AND LANDING MOVEMENTS

Abstract

Every foot contact provides an athlete with an opportunity to change the magnitude and/or direction of their total body momentum. During jumping and landing tasks, the body position relative to the reaction force, momentum at touchdown, the mechanical objective of the task, the individual’s self selected control strategy, and the properties of the surface influence the reaction force-time characteristics applied to the musculoskeletal system during foot contact. How the reaction force impulse applied at the feet is distributed will influence both performance and mechanical loading experienced by the musculoskeletal system.