ECCENTRIC EXERCISES AS A MEANS OF ENHANCING THE SPORTS PREPAREDNESS OF SCHOOL STUDENTS

Abstract

The article investigates the effectiveness of eccentric exercises as a means of enhancing the sports preparedness of school students. The relevance of the study is determined by the need to introduce modern training methods aimed at improving strength, speed-strength abilities, and the functional capabilities of students while ensuring the safety of the training process. The purpose of the study was to theoretically substantiate, develop, and experimentally verify a methodology for the application of eccentric exercises in the sports training of school students. The study involved 40 ninth-grade students aged 14–15 years from the Scientific Lyceum “Polit” of the Kremenchuk Humanitarian and Technological Academy. The pedagogical experiment lasted eight weeks, during which the participants performed a specially designed set of eccentric exercises three times per week. The training program included slow eccentric squats, lunges, push-ups, pull-ups, and calf raises with an emphasis on the eccentric phase of movement. The effectiveness of the proposed methodology was evaluated using the following tests: standing long jump, push-ups, 30-meter sprint, and inverted row pull-ups. Statistical data processing was performed using jamovi 2.7 software. Data normality was assessed using the Shapiro–Wilk test, while differences between pre- and postexperimental measurements were determined using the paired Student’s t-test. The results demonstrated statistically significant improvements in all indicators of sports preparedness after the implementation of the proposed methodology (p < 0.001). The greatest improvements were observed in strength and speed-strength performance, indicating the positive influence of eccentric training on the neuromuscular adaptation of school students. The findings confirm the effectiveness of the developed methodology and support the integration of eccentric exercises into the sports training process of secondary school students. Future research should focus on optimizing eccentric training loads for different age groups and sports specializations, as well as investigating the long-term effects of eccentric exercise on physical performance and injury prevention.