Effects of Muscle Volume on the Jumping Performance in Males and Females

Background: A significant impact on the training process is caused by sex-specific differences that emerge throughout puberty. However, it is still unclear what impact this should have on how training programs are planned, implemented, and set goals for boys and girls of different ages. Purpose To study the relationship between vertical jump performance and muscle volume, considering age and sex factors. Methods 90 healthy male and 90 healthy female participants (aged 9 to 22 years) performed three different types of vertical jumps: squat jump, counter movement jump without and with arm swings. A standard Anthropometric method was used to measure the muscle volume. Results Muscle volume was different across age groups. For both sexes in the Squat Jump, Counter Movement Jump, and Counter Movement Jump arms, significant age, sex, and interaction effects were found. From the age of 14–15, Males performed significantly better than females (p = 0.001). These differences persisted when performances were normalized to the length of lower limbs’. Following normalization to muscle volume males elicited better performance when compared to females. This difference persisted only for the 20–22 age group in Squat Jump (p = 0.005), Counter Movement Jump (p = 0.022) and in Counter Movement Jump with arms (p = 0.016). Significant correlation occurred between Muscle Volume and Squat Jump (r = 0.70; p < 0.01), Counter Movement Jump (r = 0.70; p < 0.01) and Counter Movement Jump with arms (r = 0.55; p < 0.01) for male participants. Conclusions The muscle volume appeared to be the determining factor in intersexual differences in vertical jumping performances.