Vertical Leaps Lab Report
The purpose of this lab was to determine whether females or males jump higher. This was measured by comparing the calf size and the height of leaps in both men and women. It is suggested that whichever sex jumped the highest, has a larger amount of fast twitch fibers. The size of the calf was determined by measuring the calf circumference and the skin fold thickness. To measure the calf circumference, I sat on a bench with my leg dangling over flaccidly. I then placed a piece of string around the thickest part of my calf. The length of the string was recorded in centimeters. The measurement was repeated twice near the original point of calf thickness. The average of these measurements determined my calf’s circumference. We used a caliper
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to measure the skin fold thickness. I had to pinch the thickest part of my skin on the medial side of the calf, after that, I used the caliper to measure the amount of thickness in centimeters. The measurement was repeated twice near the original point of calf thickness. The average of these measurements determined my skin fold thickness. The average of the skin fold thickness was subtracted from the average of the calf circumference; the difference of the two created the adjusted circumference (calf size). After my measurements were completed, I had to test my vertical leap. Before starting my vertical leap test, I stood in front of a window facing it. With my back completely straight and my feet flat on the ground, I took a sticky note in one hand and placed it on the window as high as it could go. This was my initial reach test. In the first phase, I performed one practice leap, by bending my knees and jumping straight up while extending the same arm used to perform the initial reach test. In the second phase, I placed a second sticky note into the hand used in the initial reach test and the practice jump, then repeated my vertical jump. When I got to the apex of my leap, I stuck the second sticky note onto the window. The distance between the top of the sticky note for the initial reach test and the top of the apex of my leap was recorded in centimeters. I performed the leap two more times and recorded the distances. The average of these measurements determined my vertical leap. Forty-eight students participated in this experiment (24 females, 24 males). The data was separated into three different categories; Female Vertical Leap vs. Male Vertical Leap, Female Vertical Leap - Athletes vs. Non Athletes, Male Vertical Leap - Athletes vs. Non Athletes. Scatterplot graphs were used for the data. The y-axis provided the length of vertical leap, and the x-axis provided the calf size. I used unpaired t-tests to determine whether there was a significant difference between the two groups being compared within the categories.
Results
It is suggested that a person with a higher amount of fast twitch fibers can jump higher than a person with a lesser amount. Men typically have a more testosterone, which causes the size of fast twitch fibers to increase, than women. Ergo, this experiment tested whether men or women (athletes and non athletes) jump higher due to the number of fast twitch fibers the person had. We tested this by measuring the participants’ calf size and vertical leap, the data acquired was separated into three different categories. Unpaired t-tests were performed to determine if there was a significant difference between two groups within the same category. A P value less than 0.05 confirms that there was a significant difference, as opposed to a P value of 0.1 which would indicate that there was no significant difference, but there was a huge difference between the two groups. Figure 1 compared the vertical leaps between the female and male participants. This data was used to discover if the smaller and larger amounts of testosterone within the two genders affected the distribution of slow and fast twitch fibers. The scatterplot above revealed that the height of the female participants’ vertical leaps, were typically lower than the male participants, even though there was a significant amount of calf sizes between 32 cm and 38 cm in both genders. The female’s data showed that there was a linear relationship between the leap and calf size; a best fit line could be drawn. The t-test for the female’s leap data provided a mean value of 28.2 +/- 7 cm. The male’s data presented a completely horizontal trend line based on the relationship between leaps and calf size; a best fit line could be drawn. The t-test for the males leap data provided a mean value of 50.8 +/- 23.9 cm. The t-test conducted on the vertical leaps for both genders revealed a significant difference (P value = 0.0001). Figure 2 compared the vertical leap of the athletic and non athletic female participants. This data was used to determine whether training as an athlete could increase the height of the subject’s vertical leap. The graph above compared the vertical leaps of athletic females and non athletic females.
The athletic participants’ calf sizes were typically between 30 cm and 32 cm, as well as 37 cm and 38 cm. All of the athletes’ vertical leaps were higher than 25 cm. This data displayed an inverse linear relationship between the leap and calf size; a best fit line could be drawn. The t-test produced a mean value of 30.2 +/- 4.2 cm. The non athletic participants’ data showed that the calf sizes varied, and the height of the vertical leaps tended to be lower than the athletes. The vertical leaps for the non athletes typically reached a 25 cm height or lower with a few outliers. This data displayed an inverse linear relationship, but a best fit line could not be drawn. The t-test produced a mean value of 25.3 +/- 7.8 cm. The t-test conducted on the vertical jumps between athletic and non athletic female participants indicated no significant difference (P value = 0.0918), but there was a large difference between the two groups. Figure 3 compared the vertical leaps of athletic and non athletic male participants. These results were used to determine whether training as an athlete had the possibility of increasing the height of the subject’s vertical
leap. The data above analyzed the height of vertical leaps between the athletic and non athletic male participants. The calf sizes of the athletic participants ranged between 33 cm and 41 cm, and all leaps were 49cm or higher. This data revealed a linear relationship between the vertical leaps and calf size, but a best fit line could not be drawn. The t-test provided a mean value of 63.1 +/- 29.2 cm. Similar to the female non athletes, the non athletic male participants’ data showed varied calf sizes. The highest vertical jump for the non athletic male participants was 45 cm. The data displayed an inverse linear relationship; a best fit line could be drawn. The t-test provided a mean value of 38.5 +/-4 cm. The t-test conducted on the vertical leaps between the athletic and non athletic males revealed a significant difference between the two groups (P value = 0.0119).
Discussion
The purpose of this experiment was to determine if females or males could jump higher based off of greater values of fast twitch fibers in both athletic and non athletic participants. Due to males having higher levels of testosterone, it is hypothesized that the male participants would perform higher vertical leaps than the female participants. The t-test for the female’s leap data provided a mean value of 28.2 +/- 7 cm and the t-test for the males leap data provided a mean value of 50.8 +/- 23.9 cm. The results for vertical leaps between the female and male participants revealed there was a significant difference (P value = 0.0001). The vertical leaps for the females were generally lower than leaps for the males. This result was due to males having greater levels of testosterone, thus, more type IIB fibers within their gastrocnemius muscle (Haizlip et al., 2015, 36-37). The male participants produced more force performing their vertical leaps because they had more type IIB fibers. The t-test for female athletes produced a mean value of 30.2 +/- 4.2 cm and the t-test for non athletic females produced a mean value of 25.3 +/- 7.8 cm. The results for vertical leap between athletic and non athletic female participants showed there was not a significant difference (P value = 0.0918). The t-test for male athletes provided a mean value of 63.1 +/- 29.2 cm and the t-test for non athletic males provided a mean value of 38.5 +/-4 cm. The results for vertical leap between athletic and non athletic male participants indicated there was a significant difference (P value = 0.0119). This significant difference may have been due to hypertrophy during resistance training exercises (Betts et al., 2013, 10.6). The original hypothesis that the male participants would achieve higher vertical jumps was proven correct. Both male and female participants have type IIB fibers in their gastrocnemius muscle, but due to high levels of testosterone, the males had more. This allowed the male participants to have a greater force while performing a vertical jump compared to the females. This experiment is limited by not having controlled age groups, controlled weight groups, or proper squat jump format which may represent a conflict.
to measure the skin fold thickness. I had to pinch the thickest part of my skin on the medial side of the calf, after that, I used the caliper to measure the amount of thickness in centimeters. The measurement was repeated twice near the original point of calf thickness. The average of these measurements determined my skin fold thickness. The average of the skin fold thickness was subtracted from the average of the calf circumference; the difference of the two created the adjusted circumference (calf size). After my measurements were completed, I had to test my vertical leap. Before starting my vertical leap test, I stood in front of a window facing it. With my back completely straight and my feet flat on the ground, I took a sticky note in one hand and placed it on the window as high as it could go. This was my initial reach test. In the first phase, I performed one practice leap, by bending my knees and jumping straight up while extending the same arm used to perform the initial reach test. In the second phase, I placed a second sticky note into the hand used in the initial reach test and the practice jump, then repeated my vertical jump. When I got to the apex of my leap, I stuck the second sticky note onto the window. The distance between the top of the sticky note for the initial reach test and the top of the apex of my leap was recorded in centimeters. I performed the leap two more times and recorded the distances. The average of these measurements determined my vertical leap. Forty-eight students participated in this experiment (24 females, 24 males). The data was separated into three different categories; Female Vertical Leap vs. Male Vertical Leap, Female Vertical Leap - Athletes vs. Non Athletes, Male Vertical Leap - Athletes vs. Non Athletes. Scatterplot graphs were used for the data. The y-axis provided the length of vertical leap, and the x-axis provided the calf size. I used unpaired t-tests to determine whether there was a significant difference between the two groups being compared within the categories.
Results
It is suggested that a person with a higher amount of fast twitch fibers can jump higher than a person with a lesser amount. Men typically have a more testosterone, which causes the size of fast twitch fibers to increase, than women. Ergo, this experiment tested whether men or women (athletes and non athletes) jump higher due to the number of fast twitch fibers the person had. We tested this by measuring the participants’ calf size and vertical leap, the data acquired was separated into three different categories. Unpaired t-tests were performed to determine if there was a significant difference between two groups within the same category. A P value less than 0.05 confirms that there was a significant difference, as opposed to a P value of 0.1 which would indicate that there was no significant difference, but there was a huge difference between the two groups. Figure 1 compared the vertical leaps between the female and male participants. This data was used to discover if the smaller and larger amounts of testosterone within the two genders affected the distribution of slow and fast twitch fibers. The scatterplot above revealed that the height of the female participants’ vertical leaps, were typically lower than the male participants, even though there was a significant amount of calf sizes between 32 cm and 38 cm in both genders. The female’s data showed that there was a linear relationship between the leap and calf size; a best fit line could be drawn. The t-test for the female’s leap data provided a mean value of 28.2 +/- 7 cm. The male’s data presented a completely horizontal trend line based on the relationship between leaps and calf size; a best fit line could be drawn. The t-test for the males leap data provided a mean value of 50.8 +/- 23.9 cm. The t-test conducted on the vertical leaps for both genders revealed a significant difference (P value = 0.0001). Figure 2 compared the vertical leap of the athletic and non athletic female participants. This data was used to determine whether training as an athlete could increase the height of the subject’s vertical leap. The graph above compared the vertical leaps of athletic females and non athletic females.
The athletic participants’ calf sizes were typically between 30 cm and 32 cm, as well as 37 cm and 38 cm. All of the athletes’ vertical leaps were higher than 25 cm. This data displayed an inverse linear relationship between the leap and calf size; a best fit line could be drawn. The t-test produced a mean value of 30.2 +/- 4.2 cm. The non athletic participants’ data showed that the calf sizes varied, and the height of the vertical leaps tended to be lower than the athletes. The vertical leaps for the non athletes typically reached a 25 cm height or lower with a few outliers. This data displayed an inverse linear relationship, but a best fit line could not be drawn. The t-test produced a mean value of 25.3 +/- 7.8 cm. The t-test conducted on the vertical jumps between athletic and non athletic female participants indicated no significant difference (P value = 0.0918), but there was a large difference between the two groups. Figure 3 compared the vertical leaps of athletic and non athletic male participants. These results were used to determine whether training as an athlete had the possibility of increasing the height of the subject’s vertical
leap. The data above analyzed the height of vertical leaps between the athletic and non athletic male participants. The calf sizes of the athletic participants ranged between 33 cm and 41 cm, and all leaps were 49cm or higher. This data revealed a linear relationship between the vertical leaps and calf size, but a best fit line could not be drawn. The t-test provided a mean value of 63.1 +/- 29.2 cm. Similar to the female non athletes, the non athletic male participants’ data showed varied calf sizes. The highest vertical jump for the non athletic male participants was 45 cm. The data displayed an inverse linear relationship; a best fit line could be drawn. The t-test provided a mean value of 38.5 +/-4 cm. The t-test conducted on the vertical leaps between the athletic and non athletic males revealed a significant difference between the two groups (P value = 0.0119).
Discussion
The purpose of this experiment was to determine if females or males could jump higher based off of greater values of fast twitch fibers in both athletic and non athletic participants. Due to males having higher levels of testosterone, it is hypothesized that the male participants would perform higher vertical leaps than the female participants. The t-test for the female’s leap data provided a mean value of 28.2 +/- 7 cm and the t-test for the males leap data provided a mean value of 50.8 +/- 23.9 cm. The results for vertical leaps between the female and male participants revealed there was a significant difference (P value = 0.0001). The vertical leaps for the females were generally lower than leaps for the males. This result was due to males having greater levels of testosterone, thus, more type IIB fibers within their gastrocnemius muscle (Haizlip et al., 2015, 36-37). The male participants produced more force performing their vertical leaps because they had more type IIB fibers. The t-test for female athletes produced a mean value of 30.2 +/- 4.2 cm and the t-test for non athletic females produced a mean value of 25.3 +/- 7.8 cm. The results for vertical leap between athletic and non athletic female participants showed there was not a significant difference (P value = 0.0918). The t-test for male athletes provided a mean value of 63.1 +/- 29.2 cm and the t-test for non athletic males provided a mean value of 38.5 +/-4 cm. The results for vertical leap between athletic and non athletic male participants indicated there was a significant difference (P value = 0.0119). This significant difference may have been due to hypertrophy during resistance training exercises (Betts et al., 2013, 10.6). The original hypothesis that the male participants would achieve higher vertical jumps was proven correct. Both male and female participants have type IIB fibers in their gastrocnemius muscle, but due to high levels of testosterone, the males had more. This allowed the male participants to have a greater force while performing a vertical jump compared to the females. This experiment is limited by not having controlled age groups, controlled weight groups, or proper squat jump format which may represent a conflict.