2015, Volume 11

Postural stability of children undergoing training in karate



Aleksandra Truszczyńska1, Justyna Drzał-Grabiec2, Sławomir Snela2, Maciej Rachwal2

1Józef Piłsudski University of Physical Education, Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
2Institute of Physiotherapy, University of Rzeszów, Rzeszów, Rzeszów, Poland


Author for correspondence: Aleksandra Truszczyńska; Józef Piłsudski University of Physical Education, Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland; email: aleksandra.rapala[at]wp.pl


Full text

Abstract

Background and Study Aim: Physical activity develops motor skills. Muscular strength and suppleness development improve coordination ability. There are numerous reports on the beneficial impact of karate kyokushin on body posture and postural stability. It may be difficult to assess the effect of karate training on the postural stability of young schoolchildren, as body posture in children is naturally unstable and undergoes constant changes. The aim of the study was static balance in a group of karate training children and peers who did not train in martial arts.
Materials and Methods: The study was conducted on 100 children. The study group consisted of 50 children who had been training karate for at least two years. There were 29 boys and 21 girls in the group. The control group consisted of 50 children of the same age. To achieve greater reliability of research, the clinical control group members were chosen on a 1:1 basis. The children from both groups did not differ significantly in terms of body mass, height or BMI, which allowed for a highly reliable comparison of the studied parameters.
Results: The compilation of the Mann-Whitney U-test results for the compared groups. The analysis of results revealed a statistically significant difference between the mean values of the MAML parameter (eyes open) and the MaxML parameter (eyes open) in measurements for the two groups of children. The analysis of results revealed a difference between the mean values of the LWML parameter – the number of sways on the x-axis (eyes open) in measurements for the two groups of children. Also the statistically significant differences has been observed between the mean values of the RQSA parameters (the Romberg quotient for the path length) and the mean RQSPA parameter values (the Romberg quotient for the COP field quotient with eyes open and with eyes closed) in measurements for the two groups of children.
Conclusions: Karate developed balance in children aged 7-10 years, in that it had a beneficial effect on their motor skills. Regular karate training developed increased medio-lateral postural stability and greater sensitivity of the postural system to the distorting stimuli. The dependence of postural stability on the corrective function of the visual system was lower in karate-training children due to the better-developed sensory integration.


Key words: comparatistic, karate kyokushin, martial arts, non-active children


Cite this article as:

AMA:

Truszczyńska A, Drzał-Grabiec J, Snela S et al. Postural stability of children undergoing training in karate. ARCH BUDO. 2015;11

APA:

Truszczyńska, A., Drzał-Grabiec, J., Snela, S., & Rachwal, M. (2015). Postural stability of children undergoing training in karate. ARCH BUDO, 11

Chicago:

Truszczyńska, Aleksandra, Drzał-Grabiec Justyna, Snela Sławomir, Rachwal Maciej. 2015. "Postural stability of children undergoing training in karate". ARCH BUDO 11

Harvard:

Truszczyńska, A., Drzał-Grabiec, J., Snela, S., and Rachwal, M. (2015). Postural stability of children undergoing training in karate. ARCH BUDO, 11

MLA:

Truszczyńska, Aleksandra et al. "Postural stability of children undergoing training in karate." ARCH BUDO, vol. 11, 2015

Vancouver:

Truszczyńska A, Drzał-Grabiec J, Snela S et al. Postural stability of children undergoing training in karate. ARCH BUDO 2015; 11