UNIT – 8

FUNDAMENTALS OF KINESIOLOGY
AND BIOMECHANICS IN SPORTS

CLASS - XI
 1. Definition and Importance of
Kinesiology and Biomechanics in Sports
Definition of Kinesiology:
• The word 'kinesiology' is derived from the Greek word
‘kinesis’ means ‘motion’ and ‘logos’ means to ‘discourse
or to study’.
• Thus, 'kinesiology' means the study of motion.
• Kinesiology may be defined as a science which investigates
and analyzes human motion.
 Importance of Kinesiology in Sports

• The importance of kinesiology is mentioned below:

1. Helps in avoiding sports injuries:

• Sports injuries such as sprain, strain, contusion, fracture, laceration,
concussion and dislocation of various joints usually occur during
training or competition in games and sports.

• Generally, it is seen that most of the sportspersons fall prey to some

or the other sports injury during their sports career.
But by following the principles of kinesiology the coach/physical
education teacher can guide the sportpersons/athletes to avoid some
sports injuries during training or sports competitions.

2. Helps in better and easy coaching:

• Kinesiology helps the physical education teacher/coach to analyze
the sports activity or sports for better and easier teaching and
coaching.

• The knowledge and application of the principles of kinesiology

can contribute extremely to teaching various fundamental skills
and techniques during sports coaching.
3. Helps in getting better result:
• Kinesiology plays a very significant role in getting better results.

• In fact, it helps the physical education teacher or coach to provide

effective scientific training to the sports persons and to get the
optimal performance of the sports skills and techniques.

4. Helpful in the design and selection of sports clothings,

equipment and other facilities:
• It is very helpful in the design and selection of clothings,
equipment and other facilities.
Those persons who design sports clothings, equipment, are now
more alert and keen to apply the knowledge of kinesiology while
making designs of clothings.

They want to ensure the free action and movement of

sportspersons during the execution of sports activity.

Tight clothings through the arms and shoulders usually reduces

speed of action.
6. Helps to avoid unwanted movements and errors:
• Kinesiology helps to avoid unwanted movements, errors and faults
of sports skills and techniques.

• Without the proper knowledge of the principles of kinesiology, it is

difficult to remove the faults in techniques and sports skills.

• Sometimes athletes or sportspersons may adopt faulty techniques

or start making undesirable movements.

• These wrong actions can be corrected or removed with the help of

kinesiology.
Definition of Biomechanics:
• Biomechanics is a subdiscipline of physical education.

• The term ‘biomechanics’ is a combination of two words i.e., ‘Bio’

and ‘mechanics’.

• Here ‘bio’ is a Greek word that refers to life or living things and
‘mechanics’ refers to the field of physics and the forces that act
on bodies in motion.

• According to Bartlett, R., “The study and analysis of human

movement patterns in sports is called biomechanics.”
 Importance of Biomechanics in Sports

1. Assists in Improving Technique:

• The simple method for improving performance in most of the
sports is to improve the technique of sportspersons.

• As a matter of fact, it is one of the motivating factors for studying

biomechanics. Biomechanics can be applied to improve techniques
in two ways.

• First, the teachers of physical education may use their knowledge

of mechanics to correct or rectify the errors of a sportsperson in
order to improve the proper execution of a skill.
• Second, the sportsperson may discover new and more effective
techniques for performing a sports skill.

• For example, Dick Fosbury discovered the new technique of high

jump with the help of biomechanics and that technique helped him in
achieving extraordinary enhancement in comparison to the straddle
technique.

2. Helps in Improving Equipment:

• Study of biomechanics also help in improving sports equipment.

• It helps in improving designs for the equipment used in various sports.

• Shoes and sports clothes constitute the equipment used in almost
every sport.

• The equipment used by sportspersons may have an effect on the

performance, either directly or through injury prevention.

• For example, bigger tennis rackets help players better control

over the ball, runners’ injuries are reduced and performance is
enhanced.
3. Facilitates Performance in Sports:
• The main goal of biomechanics is the improvement in sports
performance.

• Indeed, biomechanics enhances performance by utilizing

mechanical principles to improve an individual’s technique, the
equipment he/she uses and to modify the specific training
method.

• Along with this, biomechanics is also used to develop such

techniques that reduce the chances of injuries as well as make
changes in the equipment design to reduce injury.
4. Supports in Preventing Injury:
• Biomechanics helps in preventing injury in various ways.

• It also helps in the process of rehabilitation of injuries.

• In fact, biomechanics is useful in identifying what forces may

have caused an injury, how to prevent the injury from
occurring or reoccurring and what exercises may help in the
process of rehabilitation of injury.
5. Works in the Improvement of Training:
• Biomechanics has a potential for bringing modifications in
training which helps in improving sports performance.

• Biomechanics can be applied in various ways.

• A proper mechanical analysis of the technical deficiencies of a

sportsperson can help a physical education teacher in identifying
the type of training the sportsperson requires in improving the
sports performance.
 2. Principles of Biomechanics

• It is usually observed that an analysis of any sports movement reveals

that some biological and mechanical laws govern it. These laws or
principles are valid in some defined conditions.

• The different sports movements have different aims or objectives and

are executed under different mechanical and biological conditions.

• The bio-mechanical principles have been formulated to solve a motor

task in an ideal manner. These principles have been based on the
mechanical and biological laws.
1. Principle of Angular Motion:
• Angular motion is produced by the application of a force
acting at some distance from an axis, that is, by torque.

• This principle is also known as the principle of the production

of angular motion, example, baseball pitchers

2. Principle of Angular Momentum:

• Angular momentum is constant when an athlete or object is
free in the air.
• This principle is known as the o principle of conservation of
angular momentum, and its key component is the fact that, once
an athlete is airborne, he or she will travel with constant angular
momentum.

• In diving, triple somersault can be achieved by keeping the

body in the pike position.

3. Principle of Linear Motion:

• Movement usually occurs in the direction opposite to that of the
applied force. Examples, high jumper, cyclists and runners.
4. Principle of Maximum Velocity:
• The production of maximum velocity requires the use of joints
in order from the largest to smallest. Examples, hockey
slapshot, hitting a golf ball.

5. Principle of Maximum Effort:

• The production of maximum force requires the use of all
possible joint movements that contribute to the task’s objective.
Examples, golf, bench press.
 3. Kinetics and Kinematics in Sports

Kinetics in sports:
• Kinetics in sports refers to the study of forces and motion in
athletic activities.

• It involves analyzing how the human body interacts with

external forces and how those interactions impact
performance.
• Key aspects of kinetics in sports include understanding
factors like acceleration, deceleration, velocity, and the
distribution of forces during movements, which can be crucial
for optimizing athletic performance, preventing injuries, and
enhancing training programs.

• Sports scientists and coaches often use kinetics data to fine-

tune an athlete’s technique and improve their overall athletic
abilities.
Kinematics in Sports:
• Kinematics describes “how the motion is happening” but
ignores the causes of the body’s motion and the person who
initiates it.

Parameters of Kinematics:
• Four variables which aid in describing the motion accurately
are as follows:

1. Displacement:
• Movement in a given direction.
2. Velocity:
• Change in displacement: How fast an object moves in a
particular direction.

3. Acceleration:
• Change in velocity every second.

4. Time:
• Reference for change through which the above three will be
mensurated or measured.
4. Types of Body Movements – Flexion, Extension,
Abduction, Adduction, Rotation, Circumduction,
Supination & Pronation
Flexion
• Bending parts at a joint so
that the angle between
them decreases and parts
come closer together
(bending the lower limb at
the knee).
Extension
• Straightening parts at a
joint so that the angle
between them increases,
the parts move farther
apart (straightening
lower limb at knee).
Abduction
• Moving a part away from the
midline (lifting the upper limb
horizontally to form a right angle
with the side of the body).

Adduction
• Moving a part toward the
midline (returning the upper
limb from the horizontal
position to the side of the body).
Rotation
• Rotation is a form of
movement in which a bone
moves around a central axis
without undergoing any
displacement from this axis.

• Moving a part around an

axis is called rotation e.g.,
twisting the head from side
to side.
Circumduction
• Circumduction is that movement
which takes place between the head
of a bone and its articular cavity.
This kind of motion is best seen in
the shoulder and hip joints. In fact, it
is a compound circular movement
which involve s flexion, extension,
adduction and abduction. In
circumduction, a part moves in such
a way that its end follows a circular
path (moving a finger in in a circular
motion without moving the hand.)
Supination
• Supination is the movement in which a person turns his hand, wrist
and forearm upward.

• For example, turning your hand over to receive money is called

supination.

• Some activities only involve a person to use half of their supination

range of motion, e.g., clapping both the palms together.

• There are various examples of supination such as throwing a ball

underhand, and turning pages in a book.
Pronation
• Pronation is the movement in which
a person turns his hand, wrist and
forearm downward. Pronation is
used in most of the sports activities
such as in hitting and throwing and
wrist and hand actions.

• For example, in baseball pitching,

football throwing, baseball and
softball batting, racket sports
forehands and overheads and in the
golf swing.
 5. Axis and Planes – Concept and its application in
body movements

Meaning of Axis:
• An axis is a straight line around which an object rotates. In fact,
movements at the joints of human musculoskeletal system are
mainly rotational and takes place about a line perpendicular to
the plane in which they occur.

• This line is known as axis of rotation. In other words, axis is an

imaginary line (point of rotation) that passes through a joint or
body to describe movement.
Axes of movement:
• There are three axes of movement around which the body or the
body parts rotate.

1. Sagittal Axis:
• The sagittal axis passes horizontally from posterior to anterior. It is
formed by the intersection of the sagittal and transverse or
horizontal planes. In fact, sagittal axis passes from front to back.

• In fact, this line runs from the front to the back through the centre
of the body. For example, when a person performs a cart wheel he
is rotating about the sagittal axis.
2. Frontal Axis:
• The frontal axis passes horizontally from left to right.

• It is formed by the intersection of the frontal and horizontal or

transverse planes. It can be stated that the frontal axis passes from
side to side.

• In simple words, this line runs from the left to right through the
centre of the body.

• For example, when a person performs a somersault he rotates around

this axis.
3. Vertical Axis:
• The vertical axis passes vertically from inferior to superior.

• In other words, it passes straight through the top of the head down
between feet.

• It is formed by the intersection of sagittal and frontal planes. It is

also known as longitudinal axis.

• It is the longest axis. For example, when a skater performs a spin

he is rotating around the vertical axis.
Meaning of Plane:
• An imaginary, flat surface passing through the body or organ is
called plane.

• In other words, plane is the surface on which the movement

occurs or takes place.

Planes of movement:
• There are three planes of motion that pass through the human
body:
1. Sagittal or Medial Plane:
• The sagittal or medial plane is a vertical plane passing from the
rear to the front, dividing the body into left and right halves.

• It is also known as anteroposterior plane. It can also be said that

this plane lies vertically and divides the body into right and left
parts.

• Most of the sports and exercise movements that are two

dimensional, such as running, long jump, somersault, kicking a
football, chest pass in netball, walking and squatting take place
in this plane.
2. Frontal or Coronal Plane:
• The frontal plane is also vertical and passes from left to right
dividing the body into posterior to anterior halves.

• It is also known as coronal plane.

• In simple words, frontal plane cuts the body into front and back.

• Movements along the frontal plane can include cartwheel, star

jumps, jumping jack exercises, lowering arms and legs
sideways.
3. Transverse or Horizontal Plane:
• The transverse plane divides the body into top and bottom halves.

• It is also known as horizontal plane.

• This plane lies horizontally that is why it is also called horizontal

plane. In simple words, it divides the body into upper and lower
sections.

• Movements along this plane can include an ice-skating, spin or

rotation to play a tennis shot, hip rotation in a golf swing, twisting
in a discus throw, pivoting in netball and spinning in skating.