Mentor/s
Professor Jonathan Hudak
Participation Type
Poster
Abstract
Lateral motion plays a crucial role in multidirectional sports, where athletes must rapidly accelerate, decelerate, and change direction in small spaces.1 A common technique in these situations is the lateral shuffle.2 However, coaching cues that alter natural mechanics such as instructing athletes not to let their feet come together, may influence both movement strategy and performance outcomes.3 This study aimed to determine whether athletes respond to this coaching cue and, if so, how it impacts performance.4
Twelve physically active individuals (7 females, 5 males) without recent lower limb injuries participated in the study. Each completed lateral shuffle trials under two conditions: a self-selected strategy and a cued strategy instructing participants to maintain foot separation. Trials were performed to both the left and right, with motion captured using high-speed video and marker-less motion analysis software (Theia3D). Key performance metrics included peak center-of-mass (COM) velocity, time to 2.5 meters, reaction time, and minimum heel separation (MHS).
Results showed that the cue effectively altered mechanics by increasing MHS, confirming compliance with the instruction. However, this change led to significantly slower times to 2.5 meters, indicating a performance cost. No significant differences were found in reaction time or MHS between directional trials, though right-side movements consistently produced faster and more powerful outcomes.
In conclusion, while the coaching cue successfully modified foot positioning, it negatively affected speed. These findings highlight a trade-off between movement control and performance and suggest that widely used coaching strategies may need reevaluation when optimizing for speed in lateral tasks.
College and Major available
Exercise Science BS
Academic Level
Undergraduate student
Location
Digital Commons & West Campus West Building University Commons
Start Day/Time
4-25-2025 12:00 PM
End Day/Time
4-25-2025 2:00 PM
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
“Mind the Gap”: How a Simple Cue Changes Heel Distance and Shuffle Speed
Digital Commons & West Campus West Building University Commons
Lateral motion plays a crucial role in multidirectional sports, where athletes must rapidly accelerate, decelerate, and change direction in small spaces.1 A common technique in these situations is the lateral shuffle.2 However, coaching cues that alter natural mechanics such as instructing athletes not to let their feet come together, may influence both movement strategy and performance outcomes.3 This study aimed to determine whether athletes respond to this coaching cue and, if so, how it impacts performance.4
Twelve physically active individuals (7 females, 5 males) without recent lower limb injuries participated in the study. Each completed lateral shuffle trials under two conditions: a self-selected strategy and a cued strategy instructing participants to maintain foot separation. Trials were performed to both the left and right, with motion captured using high-speed video and marker-less motion analysis software (Theia3D). Key performance metrics included peak center-of-mass (COM) velocity, time to 2.5 meters, reaction time, and minimum heel separation (MHS).
Results showed that the cue effectively altered mechanics by increasing MHS, confirming compliance with the instruction. However, this change led to significantly slower times to 2.5 meters, indicating a performance cost. No significant differences were found in reaction time or MHS between directional trials, though right-side movements consistently produced faster and more powerful outcomes.
In conclusion, while the coaching cue successfully modified foot positioning, it negatively affected speed. These findings highlight a trade-off between movement control and performance and suggest that widely used coaching strategies may need reevaluation when optimizing for speed in lateral tasks.
Students' Information
Alexander Gregory, Exercise Science, Spring 2025