As an athlete or sports enthusiast, flexibility and balance assessments are used to identify your health and mobility. Though the relationship between these two is not that thoroughly evaluated by many and other online learning for sports management. The results from the test of flexibility and balance are being compared to the required values, which can affect the different levels of functionality with regards to the chosen sports activities.
Under flexibility and looseness, your joints may be prone to potential injuries. The balance and flexibility change as you age and this is one of the most significant factors that affect the level of these two functionalities.
While for young athletes, balance and flexibility is not the primary concern, though this is subject to an evaluation if the athletes have the previous case of injuries. Experts use these assessments to evaluate the athlete’s capabilities to get back in the game. That’s why every player or athlete needs to gather necessary measures of balance that will be utilized to compare in the event of a sudden injury.
Balance and Flexibility Test
These are the assessments that need to be looked for:
- Sit and reach test
- Back scratch test
- Lumbar stability tests such as trunk flexion, extensions, and side bridge
- BESS or balance error scoring system
- Single leg stance test
- Total body rotation test
- Tandem gait test
- Functional reach test
- Shoulder elevation test.
As well as the evaluation for:
- Sprinting
- Power
- Agility
- Cardiorespiratory fitness
- Muscular endurance and strength.
But for today, this article will discuss a few of these evaluations.
Sit and Reach Test
This test is responsible for evaluating the athlete’s hip and low back flexibility. To do this test, you may need to warm up a little. Remove your shoe and sit on a flat surface as possible, extend your legs in front while toes are pointing up, and feet should be slightly apart from each other.
Place a ruler or adhesive tape on the ground in between your legs. Then, place one hand on the top of it then slowly move forward. At the peak of your highest reach, remain still for a couple of seconds, jot down how far your arm has reached. If you have trouble reaching your legs, ask for help to hold your knees.
For men, an average of 0-5cm is a good output. For women, an average of 1 to 10cm is a promising result. However, if you have a -20 score, don’t worry yourself, keep on practicing to enhance your current rating.
Back Scratch Test
The goal of this test is to measure the flexibility of your shoulder range while in motion. It is created to evaluate the functional fitness of senior athletes. To do this test, the athlete should remain in a standing position. Place the other hand behind the back over the shoulder and reach as far as he can down to the middle of the back. The palm should touch your body and fingers downwards. Then, place the other arm behind the back, and palm facing outward, fingers on upward position and reach as possible as you can to overlap middle fingers in both hands.
You’ll need an assistant to measure this test; they will align the fingers to see if the fingertips touch with each other. If they do, the score is set to zero, and if they don’t, the score is negative. If fingers overlap, you’ll get a positive score.
These tests are essential for every athlete to determine the current condition and ability of these two functions.