Effects of a periodized functional strength training program (FST) on Functional Movement Screen (FMS) in physical education students

Background and Study Aim: To examine the effects of periodized functional strength training (FST) on FMS scores of sport university students with higher risk of injury. Material and Methods: Thirty three  participants (age 21.6±1.3 years, height 177.8±6.9 m, mass 80.4±7.7 kg) with FMS total score ≤ 14 were selected from eighty two volunteered students of University of Physical Education and Sport in Gdańsk and randomly assigned to experimental group (n=16) and control group (n=17). The FMS test was conducted one week before and one week after the 12 week training intervention. The experimental group participated in FST program through 12 weeks. The control group did not engaged in any additional physical activity than planned in their course of study. The  collected  data  were  analysed  using Statistica 13.3 pl (StatSoft Inc). Wilcoxon signed rank test was used to establish the statistical significance of the difference between FMS total scores within each group and Mann Whitney U test between groups before and after the 12 week training intervention. Results: 45 % of volunteers in the first FMS testing showed total scores ≤14. The experimental group that participated in FST program changed significantly FMS total scores after 12 weeks (p<0.05). There were also significant differences in FMS total score between groups after the experiment (p<0.05). Conclusions: There is a need for injury prevention programs for students of University of Physical Education and Sport in Gdańsk. It is clear from this study that FST is effective in improving FMS total score in students with cut off score ≤14.