What Are Good Metric Values?

• ‘The Physical Test of Man’, a classic paper published in 1921 by Dr. Dudley Sargent, is a must-read article for any practitioner interested in understanding the origins of the vertical jump performance assessment. 

• Dr. Sargent, an early pioneer, began the precise measurement of anthropometry and investigated how this contributes to physical performance. 

• His attempt to measure vertical displacement (i.e., how high someone jumped) can be considered as part of the birth of performance assessments. 

• The purpose of this investigation was to establish normative values and better understand the limits of human performance, which to this day still helps underpin the answer to the “What’s good!?” paradox. 

• The modern practitioner should go back to Dr. Sargent's original ethos to collect meaningful data, accurately and often.  

• As a rule of thumb 👍, if your athlete’s performance is better than it was yesterday, that is good!  

• At Hawkin Dynamics, we help you solve this problem. Our software dives deeper and provides statistical analyses at the click of a button to help you identify “What’s good!? for your team. 

• The Hawkin Dynamics Performance Team can help you go a layer deeper and help interpret "What’s good!?" within the context of your environment.  

✍️ These Metrics Matter in the US Marine Corps...

Key Points:

• 728 US Marine Corps Officer Candidates (MOC's) were tested on the HD Force Plates by University of Pittsburgh researcher, Matt Bird.
• Using machine learning, clusters (i.e. movement strategies) were identified by motion capture and HD Force Plates placing MOC's into 3 clusters: low-risk, moderate-risk, and high-risk.
• Low-risk clusters were MOC's who showed
  • ✅ Higher Braking RFD
  • ✅ Higher Braking Net Impulse
  • ✅ Higher Propulsive Net Impulse
  • ✅ Faster Braking & Propulsive Phase times
  • ✅ Less flexion overall
• Read the full study here.

📚 Hawkin Research Snippets

Brought to you by Dr. Peter Mundy

• The Verdict Is Out: Comparing Commercially Available Force Plates, read the full paper here.
• Better alternative to the Drop Jump? Countermovement Rebound Jump - Is it the right reactive strength assessment for your athletes? We think so, we commonly suggest it over the Drop Jump. Learn more about it here.

🗣️ Did You Miss It? 

Last 4 Podcast Episodes:

• N26: Adam Petway - Asking the Question First
• N27: Dr. William Kraemer - History of the Husker (Power)
• N28: Lauren Green - Creating Athlete Buy-In At All Levels
• N29: Jonathan Erskine - Implementing Sport Science in the Tactical Realm

💥 Hawkin Updates & New Features

• New Report: We recently added a new report to the Hawkin Cloud, the Block Report. It's a simple report that resembles an excel table and answers the question...did my athletes improve? 
  • The report uses two dates, and shows the % change between the two.
  • Custom red, yellow, and green flagging set by you.
• Weight Report Updates: Previously, the color coding for the Weight Report was hard-coded. You can now add your own custom flagging parameters.
• De-Identify Data: You can now de-Identify data when exporting it. 
• Improved Smartabase Integration: We can always make things better for our users. We integrate will all major Athlete Management Solutions (AMS).

⏰ Timely Events & More

• Former LSU football coach, Ed Orgeron recently shared his thoughts on his time at LSU, and leaving before his contract expired...and the nearly $18m buyout.

• Students are back on-campus. Need help running a PPE (Physical Performance Evaluation) on your student-athletes? Contact the HD Performance Team via the support channel here.
• The NFL Season kicks-off this Thursday, September 8th. The Los Angelos Rams host the Buffalo Bills in SoFi Stadium at 8:20pm EST
• Hawkin Family Football Face-off: Pittsburgh & West Virginia Football faced off last Thursday for the season opener of College Game-Day. It was the first time the two teams have played since 2011, and the largest ever recorded crowd at a Pittsburgh sporting event (over 70,622 fans in attendance). Pitt won 38-31.

😎 #HawkinFamily of the Week 

Victor Kizer, Director of the Exercise Science Program/Assistant Professor of Exercise Science

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