Smith, Chelsea, Doma, Kenji, Heilbronn, Brian, and Leicht, Anthony (2023) Impact of a 5-week individualised training program on physical performance and measures associated with musculoskeletal injury risk in army personnel: A pilot study. Sports, 11 (1). 8.

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Abstract

Objective: To examine the feasibility and effect of an individualised and force-plate guided training program on physical performance and musculoskeletal injury risk factors in army personnel.

Design: Pre-post, randomised control.

Methods: Fourteen male and five female Australian Army soldiers were randomised into two groups and performed 5-weeks of physical training. The control group (n = 9) completed standard, group-designed, physical training whilst the experimental group (n = 8) completed an individualised training program. Physical (push-ups, multi-stage fitness test, three repetition maximum (3RM) for squat, strict press, deadlift and floor press), occupational (weight-loaded march time), and technological assessments (two-leg and one-leg countermovement jumps (CMJ), one-leg balance, one-arm plank) were conducted prior to and following the training period. Comparisons between groups and changes within groups were conducted via Mann–Whitney U tests.

Results: Compared to the control group, the experimental group exhibited a significantly smaller improvement for weight-loaded march time (−0.7% ± 4.0% vs. −5.1% ± 3.0%, p = 0.03) and a greater improvement for deadlift-3RM (20.6% ± 11.9% vs. 8.4% ± 6.8%, p = 0.056). All other outcomes were similar between groups. Visually favourable alterations in the two-leg CMJ profile with no reports of injuries were noted for the experimental group.

Conclusions: Individualised physical training was feasible within an army setting and, for the most part, produced similar physical, occupational and technological performances to that of standard, group-designed physical training. These preliminary results provide a foundation for future research to expand upon and clarify the benefits of individualised training programs on long-term physical performance and injury risk/incidence in active combat army personnel.

Item ID:	77273
Item Type:	Article (Research - C1)
ISSN:	2075-4663
Keywords:	military; exercise; resistance training; muscular strength; countermovement jump
Copyright Information:	© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Date Deposited:	25 Jan 2023 01:34
FoR Codes:	42 HEALTH SCIENCES > 4207 Sports science and exercise > 420702 Exercise physiology @ 100%
SEO Codes:	14 DEFENCE > 1401 Defence > 140110 Personnel @ 50% 13 CULTURE AND SOCIETY > 1306 Sport, exercise and recreation > 130601 Exercise @ 50%
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