A Three Week Unexpected Disturbance Program Improves Physical Performance of Elite Female Athletes

CONTEXT: Sensorimotor training is commonly used in a rehabilitative setting; however, the effectiveness of an unexpected disturbance program (UDP) to enhance performance measures in uninjured elite athletes is unknown.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of a three-week UDP program onstrength, power, and proprioceptive measures.

DESIGN: Matched-group, pre- post design.

SETTING: National Sports Institute.

PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-one international-level female field hockey athletes.

INTERVENTIONS: Two 45 min UDP sessions were incorporated into each week of a three week training program (total 6 sessions).

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: One-repetition maximum strength, lower limb power, 20 m running speed, and proprioception tests were performed before and after the experimental period.

RESULTS: Substantial improvements in running sprint speed at 5- (4.4 ± 2.6%; Effect Size [ES]: 0.88), 10- (2.1 ± 1.9%; ES: 0.51), and 20-m (1.0 ± 1.6%; ES: 0.23) were observed in the UDP group. Squat jump performance was also clearly enhanced when compared to the control group (3.1 ± 6.1%; ES: 0.23). Small but clear improvements in maximal strength were observed in both groups.

CONCLUSION: A three week UDP can elicit clear enhancements in running sprint speed and concentric-only jump performance. These improvements are suggestive of enhanced explosive strength and are particularly notable given the elite training status of the cohort and relatively short duration of the intervention. Thus, we would reiterate the statement by Gruber and colleagues (2004) that sensorimotor training is a "highly efficient" modality for improving explosive strength.