ORIGINAL PAPER
Acute effects of exercise-induced fatigue on jump performance and jump-based inter-limb asymmetry in wushu athletes
1
School of Physical Education and Sports, Rashtriya Raksha University, Gandhinagar, India
2
University of Coimbra, CIPER, Faculty of Sport Sciences and Physical Education, Coimbra, Portugal
3
Symbiosis School of Sports Sciences, Symbiosis International (Deemed University), Pune, India
Submission date: 2025-07-11
Acceptance date: 2026-04-21
Online publication date: 2026-06-01
Corresponding author
Utsav Chaware
School of Physical Education and Sports, Rashtriya Raksha University, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, 382305, India
School of Physical Education and Sports, Rashtriya Raksha University, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, 382305, India
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
Purpose:
The study aimed to investigate the acute effects of exercise-induced fatigue on jump and jump-based inter-limb asymmetry in Wushu Sanda athletes.
Methods:
Fourteen national-level Wushu Sanda athletes (9 males, 5 females; 18–21 years) completed a pre–post within-subjects experimental design. Participants performed a series of bilateral and unilateral jumps before and after a standardised fatigue protocol that mimicked Wushu match demands. Countermovement jump (CMJ) and standing broad jump (SBJ) [as slow stretch-shortening cycle (SSC)], drop jump (DJ; as fast SSC), and triple hop for horizontal power were assessed. Inter-limb asymmetry was calculated using performance differentials. Paired t-tests and Hedges’ g were applied to analyse changes.
Results:
Significant post-fatigue reductions were observed in bilateral CMJ height (p < 0.001, g = 0.43), DJ reactive strength index (p = 0.003, g = 0.36), and SBJ distance (p = 0.011, g = 0.51). Unilateral CMJ height decreased significantly for both legs (p = 0.001–0.002, g = 0.35–0.36) while unilateral SBJ distance decreased only for the left leg (p = 0.034, g = 0.47). No significant changes were found in DJ ground contact time or inter-limb asymmetry across CMJ, SBJ, and triple-hop tests (all p > 0.05).
Conclusions:
The fatigue protocol elicited acute neuromuscular fatigue, evidenced by reduced jump performance. However, inter-limb asymmetry remained unaffected, likely due to uniform fatigue across the limbs. These findings suggest that while fatigue impairs jump performance in Wushu athletes, it does not significantly alter inter-limb asymmetry under the given protocol.
The study aimed to investigate the acute effects of exercise-induced fatigue on jump and jump-based inter-limb asymmetry in Wushu Sanda athletes.
Methods:
Fourteen national-level Wushu Sanda athletes (9 males, 5 females; 18–21 years) completed a pre–post within-subjects experimental design. Participants performed a series of bilateral and unilateral jumps before and after a standardised fatigue protocol that mimicked Wushu match demands. Countermovement jump (CMJ) and standing broad jump (SBJ) [as slow stretch-shortening cycle (SSC)], drop jump (DJ; as fast SSC), and triple hop for horizontal power were assessed. Inter-limb asymmetry was calculated using performance differentials. Paired t-tests and Hedges’ g were applied to analyse changes.
Results:
Significant post-fatigue reductions were observed in bilateral CMJ height (p < 0.001, g = 0.43), DJ reactive strength index (p = 0.003, g = 0.36), and SBJ distance (p = 0.011, g = 0.51). Unilateral CMJ height decreased significantly for both legs (p = 0.001–0.002, g = 0.35–0.36) while unilateral SBJ distance decreased only for the left leg (p = 0.034, g = 0.47). No significant changes were found in DJ ground contact time or inter-limb asymmetry across CMJ, SBJ, and triple-hop tests (all p > 0.05).
Conclusions:
The fatigue protocol elicited acute neuromuscular fatigue, evidenced by reduced jump performance. However, inter-limb asymmetry remained unaffected, likely due to uniform fatigue across the limbs. These findings suggest that while fatigue impairs jump performance in Wushu athletes, it does not significantly alter inter-limb asymmetry under the given protocol.
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