THE EFFECT OF KETTLEBELL TRAINING ON FLEXIBILITY IN YOUTH BOXERS (17 – 18 YEARS)

This study aims to analyze the effect of kettlebell training for six weeks on the flexibility of youth category boxing athletes. The design of this study was a pre-experimental two-group pretest-posttest. The sample of this study was 26 boxers (18 male and 8 female) divided into 13 boxers in the Kettlebell Group (KG) and 13 boxers in the Control Group (CG). Characteristics of boxers were as follow: aged 17.3±5.7; had 3.1±7.2 years training experience; height and weight of male boxers were 168.3±0.4 cm and 57.7±6.2 kg; height and weight of female boxers were 163.7±4.7 cm and 51.2±1.8 kg. Back flexibility test used sit and reach, and the shoulder and wrist flexibility test used static flexibility test-shoulder and wrist. This type of kettlebell exercises is Goblet Squat, Sumo Squat, Romanian Deadlift, Uneven Lunge, Bent Over Row, Over Head Press, Single Arm Chest, Tricep Diamond Press, Squat to Press. Then, the weight of the kettlebell is 4 kg, 6 kg, 8 kg; Intensity 60%-80%; while in CG the boxer only trains as usual. The results of the study using the t-test showed that there was an effect between back flexibility, shoulder flexibility and wrist flexibility in KG and CG (p<0.05). However, during the independent t-test, there was a difference in the results of KG and CG training on back flexibility of 0.027 or p<0.05; then there was a difference in the results of KG and CG training on shoulder and wrist flexibility of 0.009 or p<0.05. The results of this study can provide insight, especially for boxing trainers and athletes who practice kettlebell. However, it is necessary to pay attention in terms of volume and intensity so that the increase in training results using kettlebell can be significant.<p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/soc/0704/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>