MedTrace Logo

Reactive Strength and Dynamic Rebound: A Drop Jump Index Comparison

NCT07475078 · Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 50

Last updated 2026-03-16

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

The stretch-shortening cycle (SSC) is a fundamental mechanism in explosive human movement, enabling musculotendinous units to store and release elastic energy, thereby allowing the body to produce higher forces and velocities with greater mechanical efficiency. Movements such as sprinting, jumping, hopping, and sudden changes of direction, which depend on rapid force application, are supported by an effective SSC. Because of this, identifying a simple and interpretable index of SSC function has long been a priority in both research and applied sport settings.

The Reactive Strength Index (RSI), most commonly defined as the ratio of jump height to ground contact time, has become the most widely used metric for quantifying SSC performance. However, this ratio presents notable methodological limitations: it combines variables of incompatible dimensions and is insensitive to drop height, thereby ignoring the eccentric load imposed on the musculotendinous system. The Dynamic Rebound Index (DRI), recently proposed as a dimensionless and mechanically grounded alternative, is calculated as DRI = (box height + jump height) / (9.8 × ground contact time²). Despite its theoretical advantages, a direct comparison between the RSI and DRI remains unexplored in the literature, which justifies the relevance of the present study.

This study aims to compare the RSI and the DRI in physically active adults of both sexes during the execution of the Drop Jump at four different drop heights (20, 30, 40, and 50 cm). The specific objectives are: (a) to characterize performance across the four height conditions; (b) to analyze differences between sexes in both indices; (c) to examine the effect of drop height on both indices; and (d) to explore the informative complementarity between the two indices.

Conditions

  • Physical Performance Parameters

Interventions

OTHER

Drop Jump Protocol

Participants perform 3 valid Drop Jump trials at each of four drop heights (20, 30, 40, and 50 cm) in a randomized order, with 1 minute of rest between trials and 5 minutes between conditions. Jump height and ground contact time are recorded using a contact mat (ChronoJump, Boscosystem, Spain) for subsequent calculation of the RSI and DRI.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • University Institute of Maia

    lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
OTHER
Masking
NONE
Model
CROSSOVER

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2026-03-31
Primary Completion
2026-07-31
Completion
2026-07-31

Countries

  • Portugal

Study Locations

More Related Trials

Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT07475078 on ClinicalTrials.gov