ABSTRACT
Introduction:
Aerobic gymnastics is a sport that involves a sense of beauty, rhythm and dance, with high artistic expressiveness, characteristics that have favored a strong population adherence. It is believed that the specific flexibility exercise can add a greater visual impact to their artistic movements, raising their competitive performance.
Objective:
Verify the impacts of lower limb flexibility exercise on the performance of aerobics athletes.
Methods:
Six aerobics athletes were selected to perform an 8-week experiment, adopting the PNF methodology for training. The impacts on lower limb flexibility were measured before and after the experiment, these data were analyzed and studied statistically.
Results:
The results of the long jump in the physical quality index of the athletes increased by 0.1209 m; the added value in the two-minute, 10-m backstroke test was 1.46. The movement performance indexes showed expressive increases: flexion increased by 2.62; right angle support increased by 0.78; split leg jump increased by 1.95; standing jump with eyes closed and the foot balance quality index was 4.63.
Conclusion:
Lower limb flexibility exercise can positively impact the performance of aerobic gymnastics athletes. Level of evidence II; Therapeutic studies - investigation of treatment outcomes.
Keywords:
Gymnastics; Lower Limbs; Range of Motion, Articular; Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) Stretching