Dual_Forehand_Cdn
New User
I don't think the mechanisms of the SSC are relevant...as there is no clear answer as to how it works.
But the SSC is clearly real and easily demonstrable by measuring your own standing vertical jump. You don't sit in a squat position and explode. You coordinate a fast bend with an explosive throwing of your arms. Bend too much, you don't jump as high.
For those who are not familiar, there is an elastic component when one stretches a muscle and then QUICKLY contracts it. This elastic component increases the power/force of your contraction beyond what your motor cortex can accomplish on its own (your ability to recruit muscle fibers in a single contraction is capped).
But upon stretching of a muscle, the window of this elastic rebound is VERY small. If you stretch the muscle too much, the time to contract is increased, and the benefit all but disappears.
Another easy way to understand it is to jump off boxes of various heights and attempt a max vertical jump. The acceleration of gravity results in an ever-increasing stretch of the quadriceps. So if it was just a matter of a massive quick stretch, your best result would be from the highest box. But it's not, and the less fast twitch muscle you have in your quadriceps (or how well trained your motor cortex is), the lower the box needs to be to result in your best jump. An SSC needs a fast transition from stretch to contraction.
Which brings me to the question: which muscle groups can be recruited, and for this discussion let's limit the SSC to forehands and serves, that allow for an actual benefit? Your obliques are stretched vertically while serving, but even those with the fastest motions like Roddick probably hold the stretch position too long to benefit from SSC. On a forehand there are numerous muscle groups stretched, but are they also held too long to result in a real SSC? An potential muscle group in a forehand would be the pec major, if a player did not eccentrically stretch fully until he was ready to fire. This could be the result of:
a) rotation (opening of the hips) causing the stretch, or
b) active stretching of the pec by the player.
However, I am not an anatomy/kinesiology/biomechanics expert. I have a cell biology degree, and muscles are an organ system that I only have a rudimentary understanding of. Anyone else have any specific insights on lesser appreciated muscles that might participate?
But the SSC is clearly real and easily demonstrable by measuring your own standing vertical jump. You don't sit in a squat position and explode. You coordinate a fast bend with an explosive throwing of your arms. Bend too much, you don't jump as high.
For those who are not familiar, there is an elastic component when one stretches a muscle and then QUICKLY contracts it. This elastic component increases the power/force of your contraction beyond what your motor cortex can accomplish on its own (your ability to recruit muscle fibers in a single contraction is capped).
But upon stretching of a muscle, the window of this elastic rebound is VERY small. If you stretch the muscle too much, the time to contract is increased, and the benefit all but disappears.
Another easy way to understand it is to jump off boxes of various heights and attempt a max vertical jump. The acceleration of gravity results in an ever-increasing stretch of the quadriceps. So if it was just a matter of a massive quick stretch, your best result would be from the highest box. But it's not, and the less fast twitch muscle you have in your quadriceps (or how well trained your motor cortex is), the lower the box needs to be to result in your best jump. An SSC needs a fast transition from stretch to contraction.
Which brings me to the question: which muscle groups can be recruited, and for this discussion let's limit the SSC to forehands and serves, that allow for an actual benefit? Your obliques are stretched vertically while serving, but even those with the fastest motions like Roddick probably hold the stretch position too long to benefit from SSC. On a forehand there are numerous muscle groups stretched, but are they also held too long to result in a real SSC? An potential muscle group in a forehand would be the pec major, if a player did not eccentrically stretch fully until he was ready to fire. This could be the result of:
a) rotation (opening of the hips) causing the stretch, or
b) active stretching of the pec by the player.
However, I am not an anatomy/kinesiology/biomechanics expert. I have a cell biology degree, and muscles are an organ system that I only have a rudimentary understanding of. Anyone else have any specific insights on lesser appreciated muscles that might participate?
