A Study to Compare the Effectiveness of Static Stretching Versus Muscle Energy Technique on Hamstring Flexibility among Amateur Foot Ball Players

Hema Saravanan P., Kishore Kumar P.

Abstract: Hamstring strain injuries (HSI) are the most common injury in male professional football players and are potentially a primary risk factor to re-injured. Prevalence of hamstring injuries ranges from 8-25%. For the study 30 male amateur football players between the age group 18-25 years were recruited with mild hamstring tightness with active knee extension more than 20 degree. The subjects were screened for eligibility to participate in the study and regarding the study. The subject explained the purpose of the study and their role in the study. STUDY DURATION: 4 weeks duration with 3 sessions per week (alternative days). PARAMETER OF THE STUDY: Back Saver Sit and Reach Test (BSSRT) and Active Knee Extension Test (AKET). The inter-group analysis compared the two treatment groups in terms of changes in all the outcome measures and the corresponding result showed that Treatment A is effective than Treatment B in terms of improvement in BACK SAVER SIT AND REACH RIGHT TEST, while there is no significant difference between two treatments in terms of improvement in ACTIVE KNEE EXTENSION TEST (RIGHT, LEFT) & BACK SAVER SIT AND REACH LEFT TEST. Hence, we conclude that Treatment A (STATIC STRETCHING) is effective than Treatment B (MUSCLE ENERGY TECHNIQUE) in improving the value of BACK SAVER SIT AND REACH TEST (RIGHT).

Keywords: Hamstring, Football, Stretching