Chapter 8 Biomechanics
Chapter 8 Biomechanics
Chapter 8 Biomechanics
1. Frontal Horizontal Axis Axis of the body that passes horizontally from side to
side at right angles to the sagittal plane.
2. Vertical Axis Axis of the body that passes from head to foot at right angles to
the transverse plane.
3. Sagittal Horizontal Axis Axis of the body that passes from front to rear lying
at right angles to the frontal plane.
Plane A plane is an imaginary flat surface along which a movement takes place. It
can be divided in three parts
1. Sagittal Plane A vertical plane of the body which passes from front to rear
dividing the body into two symmetrical halves.
2. Transverse Plane Any horizontal plane of i the body which is parallel to the
diaphragm also called the’horizontal plane
3. Frontal Plane Plane of the body which passes from side to side at right angles
to . the sagittal plane also called the coronal plane.
Types of Movements
Physical activity is made possible by movements and motions. Every movement
takes place, in one plane and around one axis. They are categorised by movement
type as follows
1. Flexion It takes place when the angle decreases between the two bones
attached to a joint.
2. Extension It takes place when the angle between the two bones attached to a
joint increases. Both flexion and extension occur in the sagittal plane about the
frontal axis.
3. Adduction It is a movement laterally toward the middle of the body.
4. Abduction It is a movement laterally away from the middle of the body. Both
adduction and abduction occur in the frontal plane about the sagittal axis.
Running
Running on a regular basis has many benefits, including weight loss, stress relief
and maintaining a strong and healthy body. As it is one of the more physically
exerting activities, it can also cause damage to our body such as a pulled hamstring
or dislocation of our knee caps. With a little knowledge, we can help prevent these
injuries with the right equipment and by properly stretching our muscles before the
run.
Our quads are responsible for moving two of the joints used in running, our knee
joint and our hip joint. They work together to straighten our knees and bend our hips.
If we are interested in strengthening our quad muscles, we should consider doing
squats and lunges. Increasing strength in our muscles apart from running can
decrease our risk of injury and increase our speed.
The semitendinosus
The semimemb ranosus, and
The biceps femoris (two parts: long head and short head).
These four parts of our hamstrings allow us to flex our knees. The semitendinosus,
semimembranosus and the long head biceps femoris work together to extend the
hips. As you may have noticed, your hamstrings work opposite your quads in how
your knees and hips move, creating a systematic medley that works well for your
body.
The gluteus macimus is the largest of the gluteal muscles. You will recognise it
easily as it is the muscle that contributes most to creating the shape of the buttocks,
better known as butt or rear-end. This muscle will help you keep proper erect posture
by extending your hips.
To our right, the shortest muscle, the iliacus, begins on our pelvic crest (the iliac
fossa) and stretches over to our thigh bone (femur). The larger of the muscles, the
psoas major, stretches from our T-12 spinal vertebiae to our Lj-5 spinal vertebrae
and there attaches to the femur. These two muscles work together to help our hips
flex. The iliopsoas are often the culprit behind severe hip pain. If you experience hip
pain while running, you should stop your routine immediately, and go to see your
doctor or a chiropractic specialist. Do not begin running again until they have
determined it to be safe.
Calf Muscles
Our calf muscles are located on the back of our leg, belovv our knee. Though many
anatomists see the calf muscle to be a single muscle (triceps surae), most say that it
is a muscle group, like our quads and hip flexors. This group consists of two main
muscles, the
Our calf muscles will allow us to flex our knee and planter flex our ankle. Like our
quads, our calf muscles can be strengthened by doing squats. Other good strength-
building exercises would include calf muscle raises and skipping!
Jumping
Only a small percentage of people has the natural ability to jump high. That is why it
is important to train properly to improve your hops if you are not among that group.
Part of this battle is knowing just what muscles are most important to lift your body
off the ground. The stronger you make them, the more power you will have to jump
high.
Quadriceps
The quadriceps rest on the front of the thighs and they have four components the
vastus medialis, vastus lateralis, rectus femoris and vastus intermedius. During a
jump, you perform hip flexion and knee extension, which both activate the
quadriceps. Hip flexion takes place when you move your thigh toward your stomach
knee extension takes place when you straighten your leg. A squat is a specific
exercise that can help you gain more strength in the quads.
Hamstrings
The hamstrings are opposing muscles to the quadriceps and have an opposite
function. You activate your hamstrings through hip extension and knee flexion. Hip
extension takes place when you bend your knee and move your heel toward your
butt. Hip extension also causes you to work the glutes. From an anatomical
standpoint, the hamstrings have three parts: the biceps, femoris, semimembranosus.
All parts get activated during the lowering phase and the explosive phase of a jump.
A squat works the hamstrings, but you can place more emphasis on them by doing a
lunge.
Hip Flexors
The hip flexors run from the lower stomach to the top of the thighs. They consist of
the psoas major and iliacus, and because of this, they are often referred to as the
iliopsoas. As the name implies, these muscles get activated when you flex your hip,
in similar fashion to the quads. Although these muscles are small, they are important
for explosive motions like sprinting and jumping. A lying leg raise is a good exercise
to strengthen the hip flexors.
Calves
The calves have two parts : the gastrocnemius and soleus. The gastrocnemius has a
lateral head and medial head and it is easily seen on the back of the leg right below
the knee. The soleus sits anterior, or in front of the gastrocnemius. Both parts
function to plantar-flex the foot. This motion occurs when you jump off the ground
and point your toes downward. Jumping rope is a good cardiovascular exercise to
train these muscles because of the repetitive hopping you do on your toes. A tuck
jump is a good exercise to work your calves because it is specific to jumping.
Throwing
Following are the muscles which are used while throwing any thing like ball, football
etc. .
Shoulder Muscles
The deltoids are the muscles of your shoulder, which play a crucial role in rotating
your aim. Always warm up adequately by performing arm circles to avoid injuring
your rotator cuff, while performing shoulder exercises.
Triceps
Your triceps are located on the back of your upper arm and aid in the process of
extending your arm at the elbow. This action helps you release the ball with force
and push it in the desired direction. To strengthen your triceps efficiently, perform
exercises such as triceps pushdowns with a rope or pulley and close-grip bench
presses.
Latissimus Dorsi
Your latissimus dorsi, often referred to as your lats, are located on either side of your
spine. These large muscles help produce force for throwing and help transfer energy
from your legs to your upper body. Among the best exercises for strengthening your
lats are pull ups, seated cable rows, and bent-over barbell rows.
Abdominals
While many people exercise their abdominal muscles in hopes of attaining a six-
pack, this muscle group is highly functional as well. A strong core facilitates the
transfer of power from your lower body to your upper body, enabling your throws to
benefit from the strength of your legs. Among the best exercises for your abs are
hanging leg raises and swiss ball crunch.
Quadriceps
The quadriceps is the major muscle group located on the front of your thigh. This
large group of muscle tissue helps you power the ball toward your intended target as
you step into your throw. Among the most effective exercises for the quadriceps are
the barbell step-up, barbell lunge and barbell squats, which also work your
abdominal muscles.
1. Newton’s First Law of Motion This law is also known as law of inertia. This
law states that a body at rest will remain at rest and a body in motion will
remain in motion at the same speed and in the same direction till any external
force is applied on it to change that state.
2. Newton’s Second Law of Motion This law states that the rate of change in
acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the force producing it and
inversely proportional to its mass.
3. Newton’s Third Law of Motion This law states that to every action, there is
always an equal apd opposite reaction. This law . describes what happens to a
body when it exerts a force on another body. These three laws are still being
used to this day to describe the kinds of objects and speeds that we encounter
in everyday life.
First Law
1. Softball The ball is hit into the air. Eventually, gravity will act on the ball, pulling
it down to the ground. Then, it will roll until friction between the ball and the
grass stops it.
2. Soccer When a soccer ball is kicked into the air, gravity will pull it back to the
ground. Then, it will continue to roll until friction between the ball and the grass
slows it down.
3. Dance When a dancer leaps, he/she only stays in the air for a short amount of
time because air resistance and gravity works against them.
4. Basketball When a basketball is shot, it takes a parabolic path due to gravity
acting on it. Then it slows down due to air resistance and fluid friction.
Second Law
If a baseball player hits a ball with double the force, the rate at which the ball will
accelerate (speed up) will be doubled. Football players can slow down, stop or
reverse the direction of other players depending upon how much force they can
generate and in which direction.
Third Law
A swimmer propels herself through the water because the water offers enough
counterforce to oppose the action of her hands pushing, allowing her to move. An
athlete can jump higher off a solid surface because it opposes his body with as much
force as he is able to generate, in contrast to sand or other unstable surface.
1. Propelling Force The propelling force produces certain effects depending upon
its point and direction of application. If the application is directly through the
projectile’s centre of gravity, only linear motion results from the force. As the
propelling force is moved farther from the centre of gravity, rotatory motion of
the object increases at the expense of linear motion.
2. Force of Gravity As soon as contact is broken with a projected object, the force
of gravity begins to diminish the upward velocity of the object. Finally, gravity
overcomes the effects of the upward component of the projectile and the object
begins to descend.
3. Effects of Air Resistance As the speed of an object increases, air resistance
has a greater retarding effect.
Friction
The force acting along two surfaces in contact which opposes the motion of one
body over the other is called the force of friction.
Friction is of two types
1. Static Friction The opposing force that comes into play when one body tends to
move over the another surface but the actual motion has yet not started is
called static friction.
2. Dynamic Friction It is the friction between two surfaces that are in relative
motion with respect to each other. It is the opposing force that comes into play
when one body is actually moving over the surface of another body.
1. Polishing By polishing the surfaces in contact, they become smooth and the
force of friction reduces. Many implements like the discus are painted to reduce
friction.
2. Lubrication The lubrication of surfaces makes them slippery and this reduces
the force of friction.
3. Streamlining Friction due to air is reduced by streamlining the shape of the
body. The aroplanes are made with a sharp front to reduce friction.
4. Use of Ball Bearings Ball bearings are used to reduce the force of friction.
Many sports require more friction and other need lesser friction. In athletics, the
shoes are designed to increase friction so that better speed can be generated.