Acute effect of stretching modalities and time-pressure on accuracy and consistency of throwing darts among 12- and 13-year-old schoolboys.

BACKGROUND: The present study addressed the lack of data on the effect of different types of stretching on selected measures of throwing accuracy. We hypothesized that the stretching procedures, within pre-exercise warm-up, could affect the accuracy and the consistency in throwing darts performances under different stress conditions.

METHODS: Eighteen right-handed schoolboys (13.1±0.4 years, 166±0.1 cm and 54.5±9 kg; mean±SD) completed the Darts Throwing Accuracy Test in free (FDT) and in time-pressure (TPDT) conditions, either after static (SS), dynamic (DS), ballistic (BS) or no-stretching (NS) protocols, on nonconsecutive days and in a counter-balanced randomized order. After performing 5 minutes of light standardized jogging and one of the three stretching protocols for 10 minutes, each participant completed the FDT and TPDT tests. Mean scores, missed darts and variability of scores, were recorded and analyzed using a two-way ANOVA with repeated measures. Heart rate (HR), ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) and the task difficulty perception (DP), were recorded through each experimental session.

RESULTS: There was no effect of the stretching procedures on accuracy in FDT. However, in the TPDT condition, better performances were recorded after NS and SS compared to DS and BS. The accuracy performances decreased in TPDT by 9.6% after NS (P<0.01); 15.3% after DS (P<0.001) and 11.8% after BS (P<0.001); but not after SS (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: Static stretching helped reducing the adverse effects of time-pressure on darts throwing performance. Consequently, static exercises are recommended before practicing activities requiring both upper limbs speed and accuracy.