ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between maximal upper-body strength assessed using a handgrip dynamometer and lower-body strength and power-producing capabilities assessed through countermovement vertical jump (CMJ). Sixteen female Olympic volleyball players volunteered to participate in the present investigation. After completing the warm-up routine, all athletes performed 3 CMJs with hands on hips (i.e., no arm swing) while standing on a dual uniaxial force plate system sampling at 1,000 Hz. The following metrics were derived from the force plate system: eccentric peak and mean force, concentric peak and mean force, and vertical jump height (i.e., impulse-momentum calculation). After the completion of the CMJ testing protocol, the handgrip strength was assessed using a digital dynamometer. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients were used to measure the strength of linear regressions (p<0.05). The results revealed moderate to strong associations between handgrip strength and CMJ performance (r=0.415–0.696). Specifically, the dominant handgrip strength revealed a statistically significant relationship with 8 of 9 force-time metrics of interest (e.g., eccentric peak force, concentric mean power, and jump height), while the non-dominant hand demonstrated a positive association with only 5 of 9 CMJ performance metrics. These results suggest that within this specific cohort of athletes, the strength of the dominant hand might be a better predictor of the overall CMJ performance, including both eccentric and concentric force and power-producing capabilities, as some of the foundational physical attributes that volleyball athletes need to possess.