Perturbations for Coaching Implications: A Preliminary Study on Swinging Arm Coordination Instrument during Tennis Forehand Stroke

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to describe swinging limb joint co-ordination while executing the tennis forehand stroke and to establish the effects of a perturbation on joint co-ordination between players of different skills levels to determine if the intended perturbations are required during training. A total 25 forehand stroke performed by 1 novice and 1 skilled tennis players respectively were captured using a 16-camera high-speed optical camera system at 250hz. Swingling limb joint co-ordination differs between players possibly due to differences in swinging kinematics. When subjected to perturbations, it took a longer time for the novice player to return to normal swinging patterns. Even with perturbations, the skilled player adapted their swinging limb co-ordination to ensure optimal performance outcomes. This strategy is key for coaching implications where including perturbations during training will provide players with the know how to re-adjust their swinging patterns most quickly when performing the next forehand stroke.