Plyometric Training Based on Motor Imagery and Action Observation in Female Volleyball Players

NCT06397586 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: BiruniUnivi
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 45
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Plyometric training (PT) is training consisting of exercises that enable the muscles to reach maximum strength in minimum time. PE improves lower extremity muscle strength, jumping performance, agility, reaction time. Although plyometric exercises contribute greatly to increasing athlete performance, athletes cannot apply PE due to loading procedures at all times of the season. PEs in the literature generally involve active application of exercises. The definition of exercise includes not only physical exercise but also mental exercise. Athletes can use mental exercises as complementary training methods that can complement or add to physical training to compensate for their deficiencies. When mental exercises are examined, we often encounter two concepts. These are action observation (AO) and motor imagery (MI). MI imagines a task without actually performing it. AO is when a person watches a certain action being performed by another third party or while the video is being played back. There are studies showing that training on MI and AO methods creates more activation in the brain when applied together. Although the definition of motor imagery has been broadly separated from action, more recent imagery theories have led to the concept of dynamic motor imagery (DMI), the practice of athletes adopting a harmonious body position and embodying the spatial and temporal properties of movement without performing the entire movement. To the best of our knowledge, no study has been found in which PT based on MI and AO was performed on female volleyball players. Additionally, to our knowledge, the effectiveness of DMI on female volleyball players has not been investigated. Therefore, the aim of our study is; PT based on MI and AO is applied to female volleyball players in two different ways; The aim is to investigate the effects of balance, jumping, agility and reaction time and to compare the effectiveness of these two methods.

Conditions

Motor Imagery

Keywords

Motor imagery; Plyometric Training; Dynamic Motor; Imagery; Volleyball

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (5)

• Movement Imagination Questionnaire-3

  It was developed by Williams et al. and Dilek et al. in order to determine the imagination ability of all individuals included in the training and control groups. "Movement Imagination Questionnaire-3", whose Turkish validity and reliability has been established by , will be used (internal consistency coefficient: 0.87). With 12 items in this survey, internal visual imagery, external visual imagery and kinesthetic imagery abilities will be evaluated through four actions each. Actions will initially be taken actively by individuals. They were then asked to perform these actions as mental tasks. These mental tasks were scored using a seven-point Likert scale (1: very difficult to see and feel; 7: very easy to see and feel). In the score calculation, the score average of the four relevant actions will be taken for each of the three sub-dimensions

  baseline and immediately after the intervention

• Vertical jump test

  Vertical jump test will be used to determine the vertical jump distances of the participants. The jump test will be video recorded and analyzed with the help of the smartphone application "My Jump 2" (© 2016-18 Carlos Balsalobre-Fernández). It has been emphasized that there is a near-perfect similarity between the My Jump 2 application and the reactive force index, time on the ground and jump height measurements of the force platform, and therefore the application is a valid and reliable measurement method

  baseline and immediately after the intervention

• Agility Performance Evaluation

  Shuttle running test (MKT) is a test frequently used to evaluate agility in athletes. MKT test will be applied according to the recommendation of Leger and Lambert (1982). Running speed signals will be controlled with the Sportexpert Test Timer (Italy) pace generator device. The test will start at 8.5 km/h and increase by 0.5 km/h every minute. Participants were asked to travel 20m at each signal. The test will be terminated when the participants cannot complete the 20m distance three times in a row even though the signal sounds. The estimated VO2max values of the participants will be calculated with the formula suggested by Leger et al.

  baseline and immediately after the intervention

• Agility T test

  Agility T test consists of 4 contact points formed in a T shape in an area of 10m length and 10m width. The aim is to complete a series that requires the subject to move in different directions and in different ways between these contact points in the shortest time possible. The difference between this test and other agility tests is that the subject always looks in the same direction. It changes direction by sliding steps to the right and left or by running backwards. This test requires two 900° and 1800° turns, as well as 10m forward, 10m right, 10m left and 10m back, for a total distance of 40m

  baseline and immediately after the intervention

• single-step hop test

  The single-step hop test will be used, which has been found to have excellent test-retest reliability as an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.94 for the dominant side and 0.96 for the non-dominant side

  baseline and immediately after the intervention

Secondary Outcomes (3)

• Y balance test

  baseline and immediately after the intervention

• Static Balance test

  baseline and immediately after the intervention

• Evaluation of reaction time

  baseline and immediately after the intervention

Study Arms (3)

GROUP I: STATICK

EXPERIMENTAL

static motor imagery and movement observation-based plyometric training

Other: Routine volleyball

GROUP II: DYNAMIC

EXPERIMENTAL

dynamic motor imagery and movement observation-based plyometric training

Other: Routine volleyball

GROUP III: ACTIVE CONTROL

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

plyometric training

Other: Routine volleyball

Interventions

Routine volleyball OTHER

MOtor imagery

Also known as: plyometric training

GROUP I: STATICK; GROUP II: DYNAMIC; GROUP III: ACTIVE CONTROL

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 30 Years
• Gender Eligibility Details: Females Voleyball Olayers
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Being a woman between the ages of 18-25
• Becoming a licensed volleyball player
• Playing volleyball actively
• Knowing how to read and write Turkish to understand, interpret and answer surveys
• Having signed the informed consent form

You may not qualify if:

• Athletes with acute injury and/or early postoperative surgery
• Those who suffered injuries while working
• Those who did not follow the research protocol (did not complete the tests and/or did not complete the training program)
• Those who want to leave the research voluntarily

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Ugur Cavlak: lead
• Biruni University: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Faculty of Health Sciences

Istanbul, Zeytinburnu, 34010, Turkey (Türkiye)

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Scott M, Taylor S, Chesterton P, Vogt S, Eaves DL. Motor imagery during action observation increases eccentric hamstring force: an acute non-physical intervention. Disabil Rehabil. 2018 Jun;40(12):1443-1451. doi: 10.1080/09638288.2017.1300333. Epub 2017 Mar 21.

  PMID: 28322596 RESULT

MeSH Terms

Interventions

Plyometric Exercise

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Exercise Therapy; Rehabilitation; Aftercare; Continuity of Patient Care; Patient Care; Therapeutics; Physical Therapy Modalities; Physical Conditioning, Human; Exercise; Motor Activity; Movement; Musculoskeletal Physiological Phenomena; Musculoskeletal and Neural Physiological Phenomena

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: CLINICAL PROFESSOR

Model Details: Randomized Controlled Trial

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 30, 2024
• First Posted: May 3, 2024
• Study Start: April 30, 2024
• Primary Completion: May 30, 2025
• Study Completion: July 1, 2025
• Last Updated: July 14, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-07

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

TU (1)