1. Kinesiology of Athletic Movement: Kicking
Zahra Abdalla
Ayan Elmi
Elizabeth Jenket
Alejandro Morales
Sondos Serageldin
Jill Sutera
Kevin Weeks

2. Soccer Kick Video

3. Background of Kicking Kicking: A series of rotational movements.
The Aim: to produce through the kinematic chain of body segments, high angular velocity to the foot in order to exert enough force for the ball to move.
Kicking is a complex motor task, which rapidly develops between the ages of four and six.

4. Goal of Kicking
The “place kick” action is performed in order to accomplish a certain velocity of the ball ( needs greater swing limb/foot speed), or to direct the ball to a desired location.
The direction of the ball is determined by the position of the planted foot and the hip position at impact.
The length of time of the kick depends on the approach distance.
The intensity of the kick is determined by the desired distance and speed.

5. Biomechanical Analysis of Kicking
Figure 3. The last step and kicking phase in a maximal kick (Luhtanen 1984)
1) You put the foot back in order to gain enough kinetic energy before you hit the ball so the ball will move due to the kinetic energy of the foot
2) Work is done by the foot on the ball- you have to work against gravity (muscles have to exert a torque against the gravity torque)
3) Release Phase: torque due to gravity will change gravitational potential energy of the leg to kinetic energy thus transferring energy from the foot to the ball

6. Athletic Application of Kicking
The standing “place-kick” can be applied to soccer and point scoring in both rugby and football.
This kick action can be broken down into 6 stages:
- the approach
- plant-foot forces
- swing-limb loading
- hip flexion and knee extension
- foot contact
- follow-through

7. Kicking Application cont.
The Approach: As a child develops their kicking pattern they learn to pace the run up and adjust their approach into a diagonal angle. A 45-degree angle produces the greatest peak ball velocity.
Plant-foot Forces: The ground reaction force on the plant foot directly affects the ball speed. There is also a direct relationship between the direction of the plant foot and the direction the ball travels. The most accurate direction of the ball can be accomplished when the foot plant position is perpendicular to a line through the center of the ball. The optimal anterior-posterior (A-P) position of the plant foot is adjacent to the ball. This A-P position determines the flight path of the kicked ball.

8. Kicking Application cont.
Swing-limb loading: The swinging of the limb prepares for the descending motion towards the ball. During this phase the opposite arm is raised to counter balance the rotating body. Both arms help keep the center of gravity over the support foot and increases the moment of inertia of the trunk. The kicking leg is extended and the knee is flexed to store elastic energy and allow a greater transfer of force to the ball. At the end of this phase there is maximal eccentric activity in the knee extensors.
Hip flexion and knee extension: In this phase the thigh is swung forward and downward with a forward rotation of the lower leg. The leg then begins to accelerate due to the combined effect of the transfer of momentum and release of stored elastic energy in the knee extensors. The knee extensors then powerfully contract to swing the leg and foot towards the ball. After the kicking leg makes contact with the ball the knee is extended and the foot is plantarflexed. At this time the hamstrings are maximally activte to slow the leg’s eccentric movement.

9. Kicking Application cont.
Foot contact with the ball: When the foot makes contact with the ball 15 % of the kinetic energy of the swinging limb is transferred to the ball and the rest of the energy is used by the eccentric activity of the hamstring muscle group to slow the limb down.
Follow –Through: This serves to keep the foot in contact with the ball to maximize the transfer of momentum and therefore increase speed. This also serves to guard against injury by gradually dissipating the kinetic and elastic forces.

10. AGONISTS and ANTAGONISTS
Hip flexors: rectus femoris, iliopsoas, sartorius
Knee extensors: 4
Dorsiflexors
Antagonists:
Hamstrings
Gastrocnemius
Plantarflexors

11. SYNERGISTS and STABILIZERS
Hip: internal & external rotators, adductors, abductors
Knee: adductors, abductors
Ankle: Peroneals (lateral) , post tibialis (medial)
Stabilizers:
Trunk stabilizers: Abdominals, psoas major, erector spinae and postural muscles
Muscles of the plant foot and leg

12. Neutralizers and Primary Muscle Group IMAs & EMAs
Hip abductors and adductors, internal and external rotators
Foot inverters and everters, pronators and supinators
Primary Muscle Group IMA & EMAs:
Hip flexors, knee extensors, dorsiflexors of tailor joint

13. Major Muscles Contractors
Adductor Magnus
Pelvic on femoral adduction
Support body weight
Pectineus, Adductor Breves & Longus
Femoral on pelvic adduction torque
Accelerate the ball
Hamstrings & Quadriceps
Flexion &Extension
Creates force

14. Axis of Rotation of the Hip
Saggital, Frontal and Horizontal Plane

15. Axis of Rotation of the Knee
Flexion & Extension in the Sagittal Plane

16. Axis of Rotation of the Knee
Horizontal Plane

17. Axis of Rotation of the Ankle

18. Major External Forces
Gravity, friction, and time (duration of contact)
The ball will exert a force equal in magnitude to contact but opposite in direction

19. Major Internal Forces
The movements in soccer are monitored by players internally. Sense organs within the muscles, joints and tendons provide information to the central processing system about their movements. This is commonly called muscle sense or kinesthetic sense. In the internal loop the nerve endings in skin tell the footballer about the touch of the ball, kinesthetic receptors in joints control the joint angle, muscle spindles relate to the length change in the muscle, and the Golgi apparatus the tension in tendon.
Internal force phases of kick include: preparation, approach & kick, and follow-through.

20. Muscle Action during kicking preparation (right-footed kick)

21. Muscle action during approach & kicking (right-footed kick)

22. Muscle action during follow-through (right-footed kick)

23. Radius of Gyration
The radius of gyration is the distance between the hip of the planted leg and the opposing hip is the axis of rotation of the kicking motion.

24. Linear and Angular Velocity
The length of the body segments or the radius of rotational movements influences the linear velocity of the rotating foot.
The linear velocity of rotating levers can be expressed as a product of the radius of rotational movement and angular velocity.
A skillful soccer player produces high ball velocity by maximizing angular velocities of the thigh and shank (Asami et al. 1976).

25. Torques and Center of Mass
Note: When you try to kick the ball, kick it at the center of mass- force from the foot should hit it in the center of mass to achieve total translational energy so the ball can reach farther, yet if not achieved it will be more stable
Torque: exerted by the muscles to rotate the lower leg around the knee joint in order to move the lower leg in position to kick the ball
Torque due to gravity: knowing the line of action of the weight (perpendicular distance to the line of action of the weight of the leg)
Figure 8. Torque of hip, knee
and ankle in a maximal
instep kick (Luhtanen 1988)

26. Newton’s Laws and Angular Motion: Newton’s 1st Law
1st Law: A body continues in a state of rest or uniform  rotation about its axis unless acted  upon by an external torque.       1) Rotatory motion of a lever usually results when muscle pulls on bone, providing the external resistance is less than the amount of muscular force acting on the bone.     2) If the mass is concentrated farther away from the axis of rotation, the moment of inertia will  be greater, thus the system (i.e., lever) will be harder to start or stop.
3) The mass distribution about an axis of rotation (i.e., joint) may be altered by changing the limb position.

27. Newton’s Laws and Angular Motion: Newton’s 2nd Law
Reactive Forces
Foot hits the ball: force applied on the ball (contact force) and ball exerts reactive force back which gives rise to the acceleration of the ball
2nd Law: The acceleration of a rotating body is directly proportional to the force causing it, in the same direction of the force and is inversely proportional to the moment of inertia/ mass of the body.
Work=Force x Distance: the magnitude of force applied by the kicker against the ball and the distance the ball moves in direction of the force of the kick
Angular momentum of a limb is increased if the angular velocity is increased ex. kicking a ball
Acceleration of the Ball= Force Contact/ Mass of Ball
Figure 5. Vertical, horizontal and lateral ground reaction forces during maximal kicking (Luhtanen 1984)

28. Newton’s 2nd Law: Impulse-Momentum
If you want to give the ball higher momentum your impulse must be higher.
The greater the mass of the leg, and the greater the velocity of the foot at impact, the greater the resultant velocity of the ball at impact.
When the foot touches the ball an impulse is exerted by the contact force of the foot
I= Force contact x Time (duration of contact)
P= Impulse (P= change in momentum of the ball)
The momentum of the kicking foot and leg= mass of the leg + velocity of the foot at impact + velocity of the body as the player approaches the ball.

29. Impulse-Momentum Continued…
The velocity production of the ball can be evaluated according to the conservation of the linear momentum in collision.
The action of the ankle can increase the release velocity of the ball a little. Through elastic collision, linear momentum transfers partly to the ball. The bigger the leg mass the higher the ball velocity. The point of application must be inside the effective hitting area, which depends on the tension in the ankle.

30. Newton’s Laws and Angular Motion: Newton’s 3rd Law
When a torque is applied by one body to another, the  second body will  exert an equal and opposite torque  on the other body.
F=ma; the kicker and the ball experience different acceleration effect, that is dependent on its mass
Acceleration of the Ball= Force Contact/ Mass of Ball
So the ball will exert a force equal in magnitude to contact but opposite in direction

31. Acceleration and Velocity
The acceleration of the kicking leg, and the resultant velocity at impact, is determined by the muscle forces being applied by the kicker.
The release velocity of the ball with respect to timing had the strongest relationship to the maximal torque produced during the 1. hip flexion 2. knee extension and 3. short ankle stabilizing in the kicking leg.
Thus the increase of the body mass means increase in the mass of the foot and this automatically increases the release velocity of the ball in the kick.
The regulation of the effective mass in the kicking foot might play an important role for getting the high release velocity to the ball (Luhtanen 1988).

32. The Role of the Arms
The role of the arms in kicking is primarily to maintain the balance of the body.
The arms are usually extended out to the sides of the body during the forward motion of the kicking leg, to help to keep the center of gravity over the support foot, and to increase the moment of inertia of the trunk and increase resistance to rotation around the spine, or the long axis of the body.
As the kicking foot contacts the ball, the opposite arm moves forward and upward across the body to help keep the trunk down and the body in balance.

33. Kicking Questions
What are the primary movers (agonists) involved in the swing phase of kicking?
a) Quadriceps, hamstrings, plantar flexors
b) Hamstrings only
c) Gluteus medius, soleus, tibialis anterior
d) Adductor magnus, soleus, fibularis longus,sartorius
The greater the mass of the leg, the______ the velocity of the foot at impact,
the ________ the resultant velocity of the ball at impact.
a) greater, lower
b) lower, greater
c) lower, lower
d) greater, greater
The momentum of a soccer kick is dependent on:
a) The velocity of the kick
b) The mass of the ball itself
c) The duration of the impact between the foot and the ball
d) All of the above
What is the purpose of the arms during kicking?
a) To allow greater transfer of force to the ball
b) To increase the intensity of the kick
c) To counter balance the rotating body
d) To increase speed
How is Newton’s third law applied to the motion of kicking?
a) Work= Force x Time
b) The ball will exert a force equal in magnitude, during contact, but opposite in direction.
c) The length of body segments influence the linear velocity of the rotating foot.
d) When the foot touches the ball an impulse is exerted by contact forces of the foot.

34. References
Barfield, B (1998), The biomechanics of kicking in soccer. Clinics in Sports Medicine. 17(4):
Ben-Sira, D (1980), A comparison of the instep kick between novices and elites. In Barfield, B (1998), The biomechanics of kicking in soccer. Clinics in Sports Medicine. 17(4):
Brukner, P, and Khan, K (2001), Clinical Sports Medicine(2nd ed). Roseville: McGraw-Hill.
Chysowych, W. (1979), The Official Soccer Book of the United States Soccer Federation. In Barfield, B (1998), The biomechanics of kicking in soccer. Clinics in Sports Medicine. 17(4):
Gainor, B, Pitrowski, G, and Puhl, J (1978), The kick. Biomechanics and collision injury. Am J Sports Med.6:
Hay, J (1996), Biomechanics of Sport Techniques. Prentice Hall: New Jersey.
Isokawa, M, and Lees, A (1988), A biomechanical analysis of the in-step kick motion in soccer. In Reilly, T, and Williams, M, (2003), Science and Soccer (2nd ed). Routledge: London. pp
Luhtanen, Pekka. Kicking. “Coaches’ Infosevice” Nov ,
Neumann, DA. Kinesiology of the Musculoskeletal System. Elsevier. 2002
Plagenhoff, S. (1971), Patterns of Human Motion. A Cinematographic Analysis. Prentice-Hall: New Jersey.
Powers, S, and Howley, E (1997), Exercise Physiology. Theory and Applications in Fitness and Performance. WCB. McGraw-Hill: Boston.
Rahnama, N and A Lees. "Comparison of muscle strength and flexibility." Pub MED 15 Sep Nov entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids= &query_hl= 2&itool=pubmed_docsum>.