Author(s): FURUHASHI, Y., MURATOMI, K., IKEDA, M., YOSHIDA, T., TANIGAWA, S., MAEMURA, H., Institution: GIFU UNIVERSITY, Country: JAPAN, Abstract-ID: 545

INTRODUCTION:
Attentional focus strategy (AFS) can promote internal (INT) or external focus of attention (EXT) and improve sports performance. Countermovement jump (CMJ) and drop jump (DJ) are plyometrics that enhance the stretch-shortening cycle, differing in movement difficulty. Plyometrics has also been found to have a positive effect on the health of non-athletes. Furuhashi et al. reported that motor learning of DJ is enhanced by EXT in non-athlete females (1). However, no studies have investigated the immediate effects of AFS on CMJ and DJ in non-athlete females, and it is unclear whether participants' preferred attentional focus is consistent with the attentional focus of best performance. Clarifying these effects could provide important insights into adjusting the use of AFS according to the difficulty of the exercise and enabling non-athletes to perform plyometrics effectively.
METHODS:
Fifteen healthy female university students without regular exercise routines performed two trials each of CMJ and DJ under three conditions (CONTROL, INT, EXT). The instructions for each condition were as follows: CONTROL (CMJ, DJ): "Perform the jump to the best of your ability", INT (CMJ): "Extend your knees and hips as explosively as possible", EXT (CMJ): "Push away from the ground as explosively as possible", INT (DJ): "Step off the box, land on the balls of your feet, then fully and explosively extend your ankles, knees, and hips to jump as high as possible", EXT (DJ): "Step off the box, jump fast, imagine the ground is hot, get off the ground quickly, imagine you are a stiff spring, and focus on jumping to the roof." Three-dimensional coordinates of the 12 retroreflective markers fixed on each subject’s body were obtained using a Vicon T20 system with 10 cameras operating (250 Hz). Ground reaction force was measured by two force platforms (1000 Hz). From the data measured, reactive strength index (RSI), contact time (CT), jump height (JH), joint power, angular flexion, and extension displacements of the lower leg joints were calculated. In addition, participants were asked to indicate which attentional focus they preferred for recreational physical activity.
RESULTS:
Only CMJ kinematics differed between conditions, with larger hip flexion in INT than EXT (p < 0.05). Only 33.3% of participants in CMJ and 26.7% of participants in DJ achieved their best performance using their preferred attentional focus. Statistical analysis showed that the participants' preferred attentional focus did not coincide with their high performing attentional focus.
CONCLUSION:
These results suggest that AFS does not affect performances of CMJ and DJ in non-athlete females. Coaches should be reminded that in plyometric training in non-athlete females, the preferred attentional focus and the attentional focus of best performance are different.

REFFERENCES:
(1) Furuhashi et al. (in press). Attentional Focus Strategy and Motor Learning of Drop Jump in Non-Athlete Females. Journal of Human Kinetics.