Vol.

1 | January 2024

THE SQUAT JUMP

P L A Y B O O K
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THE HD PLAYBOOK SERIES

Welcome to the second installment of the Hawkin Dynamics (HD) Playbooks, a
series crafted for educational purposes. Regardless of whether you use HD force
plates, this eBook promises value in understanding and enhancing the use of force
plates in the performance setting.

Check out the inaugural release in our HD Playbook Series,

"The Countermovement Jump Playbook."
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Squat Jump ......................................................................................... 4
Quiet Phase ............................................................................................... 5
Propulsive Phase ....................................................................................... 6
Flight Phase ............................................................................................... 7
Landing Phase ........................................................................................... 8
Eccentric Utilization Ratio .......................................................................... 9
Putting it All Together ............................................................................... 10
Summary ................................................................................................... 11

This eBook was produced by the HD Performance Team with influence from industry
experts and their work:

Aragón-Vargas, L. F., & Gross, M. M. (1997). Kinesiological factors in vertical jump

performance: Differences among individuals. Journal of Applied Biomechanics, 13(1),
24–44. https://doi.org/10.1123/jab.13.1.24

Chandler, P. T., Greig, M., Comfort, P., & McMahon, J. J. (2018). Variability of
plyometric and ballistic exercise technique maintains jump performance. Journal of
Strength and Conditioning Research, 32(6), 1571–1582.
https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000002572

Hawkins, S. B., Doyle, T. L., & McGuigan, M. R. (2009). The effect of different training
programs on eccentric energy utilization in college-aged males. Journal of Strength
and Conditioning Research, 23(7), 1996–2002.
https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0b013e3181b3dd57

McGuigan, M. R., Doyle, T. L. A., Newton, M., Edwards, D. J., Nimphius, S., & Newton, R.
U. (2006). Eccentric utilization ratio: Effect of sport and phase of training. The Journal
of Strength and Conditioning Research, 20(4), 992. https://doi.org/10.1519/r-19165.1

Samozino, P., Morin, J.-B., Hintzy, F., & Belli, A. (2008). A simple method for measuring
force, velocity and power output during squat jump. Journal of Biomechanics, 41(14),
2940–2945. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2008.07.028
 PAGE 4

THE SQUAT JUMP

What is it? QUIET PHASE PROPULSIVE FLIGHT PHASE LANDING

The Squat Jump (SJ) is an assessment of

lower body active muscle shortening

FORCE (N)
function. The athlete starts in a static
squat position and explodes straight up, via
forceful triple extension of their ankles,
knees and hips, with no countermovement.
This enables the measurement and
evaluation of the athlete’s concentric-only
leg extensor neuromuscular function 6 PHASES OF THE
without any eccentric preload. 1.0 1.8 2.0 2.2 2.6
COUNTERMOVEMENT JUMP
TIME (S)
This assessment transcends various
sports, leveraging its inherent strength and
explosive characteristics. Numerous
athletic maneuvers originate from static What is the Application in Sport?
positions. By removing the Stretch-
Shortening Cycle (SSC), the SJ assessment With the SJ being a simple, practical, and reliable
is useful for detecting both athletic form of lower-body neuromuscular function, it is
abilities, and for identifying an athlete's a prime assessment that can be used to measure
areas of weakness in terms of and monitor athletic performance. Sports such as
neuromuscular function. football, rugby, baseball, volleyball, sprinting, etc.
can all benefit from SJ assessments on force
It is commonly used in conjunction with the
plates. Even sports that do not exhibit a large
Countermovement Jump (CMJ) to
calculate Eccentric Utilization Ratio (EUR), vertical component can still benefit, due to the
as well as performed under a range of fact that the ability to quickly accelerate the body
external loads to calculate force-velocity is considered to be particularly important for
profiles to identify training loads. successful performance in most sports.

Historically, its validity has been A force-time curve of a SJ (shown above)

questioned as coaches have failed to displays the phases of the jump in order to
control athletes from performing a small evaluate the productivity and efficiency of the
amplitude countermovement to initiate the movement patterns.
movement; however, the HD software
takes care of this for you. This means that
if an athlete uses a countermovement that In the upcoming pages, we will delve into each
is 5% below system weight of the quiet phase of the SJ, exploring their applications in
phase (i.e., weighing) then our system will both sports and enhancing athletic performance.
automatically detect this, and not allow the
SJ attempt to pass. This ensures that a
true SJ is being completed by the athlete to
help give the coach or practitioner a more
valid assessment.

Samozino, P., Morin, J.-B., Hintzy, F., & Belli, A. (2008). A simple method for measuring force, velocity and
power output during squat jump. Journal of Biomechanics, 41(14), 2940–2945.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2008.07.028
 PAGE 5

QUIET PHASE
What is it? "The quiet phase sets the stage
QUIET PHASE
for all other metrics."

The first phase of the SJ is the quiet phase

(sometimes referred to as the weighing phase,
stance phase or silent period). At this phase, the

FORCE (N)
athlete is required to “squat” down to a self-
selected depth*. This self-selected depth should
be the equivalent depth that the athlete uses in
the bottom of their typical CMJ (the
countermovement depth metric would inform
this). Here, the athlete is required to stand as still
as possible. This is the period before the
movement begins during which system weight is 1.0 1.8 2.0 2.2
calculated. The system weight is the athlete's
TIME (S)
body weight (plus any additional external
weight) measured in Newtons and can later be
reported in pounds. System weight is also used *Some researchers suggest that 90 degrees of knee
to calculate system mass, which is reported in flexion should be used as the starting depth for a
kilograms. The graphic on the right highlights SJ. For research purposes, this may be more
where the quiet phase occurs on the force-time accurate to standardize across subjects. However,
curve. It is important to cue the athlete to hold in a practical setting it might make more sense to
still to keep the validity of the weighing period have them start at a depth that is specific to their
high. individual jump; that is unless you are using the SJ
to compare to research-derived norms.

What is the Application in Sport?

The quiet phase of the SJ on the HD force plates allows for the weight of the athlete to be
calculated and recorded, making it easier to track an athlete's weight status. In the HD Cloud there
is a Weight Report which analyzes the athlete's weight, shows the athlete's trend as well as
calculates a percent difference in order to show if the athlete's weight is fluctuating up or down.

Tracking an individual's body weight can be a crucial part of developing an effective training
program for your athletes. In terms of jump performance an athlete’s body weight/composition
can play a role. In some cases, athletes may carry too much body fat or weight and improving
body composition may yield greater improvements to jump height and sprint speeds than a
program that focuses primarily on concentric strength and power production.
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PROPULSIVE PHASE
What is it? PROPULSIVE

Due to the fact that the SJ assesses an

athlete's lower-body neuromuscular function,
this phase is considered the key phase of the

FORCE (N)
SJ. The propulsive phase is where all the work
in the SJ is completed to produce the jump.
This phase occurs when the athlete forcefully
extends their hips, knees, and ankles to propel
their Center of Mass (COM) vertically. This
phase begins when a set force threshold has
been exceeded, such as five standard
deviations above system weight which is in line
1.0 1.8 2.0 2.2
with research recommendations and is
embedded in the HD system. The graphic to the TIME (S)

right highlights where the propulsive phase is

on the force-time curve.

What is the Application in Sport?

The propulsive phase allows for the practitioner and athlete to visualize how well the athlete is
producing force in order to initiate the push-off. Specifically in the SJ, here you would analyze data
such as average/peak (relative) propulsive force, or peak (relative) propulsive power (PRPP)
Propulsive RFD, L|R Avg Propulsive Force, etc. These metrics allow you to evaluate how well the
athlete can transition out of the static squat position.

The propulsive phase has implications in power/explosive

movements as indicated previously, which can provide several
insights that we can use to create better programs for our
athletes. For example, a study by Nagahara et al. (2014) found
that the SJ had a significant correlation to the acceleration phase
of sprinting, presumably because concentric strength and power
are significant factors contributing to acceleration.

Image by Henry Barrera, Director of Basketball

For that reason, an athlete who performs poorly on the SJ may Performance at the University of Alabama.
#HawkinFamily
benefit from concentric strength & power training. For example,
Cleans, Trap Bar Jumps or Pin Squats may be good exercises to
incorporate into the training in order to work on propulsive power
production.
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FLIGHT PHASE
What is it?
FLIGHT PHASE
The third phase of the SJ is the
flight phase, which begins at the
instant of take-off. The athlete

FORCE (N)
leaves the force plates with the
intention of attaining maximal
positive COM displacement (i.e.
maximal Jump Height) before
gravity pulls them back down. As
eluded to above, the flight phase
commences at the instant of 6 PHASES OF THE
take-off (when force falls below 0 1.0
1.4 1.55 1.81 2.42
a set threshold) and ends at the
COUNTERMOVEMENT JUMP
TIME (S)
instant of touchdown (when the
athlete contacts the force plates
again and force rises above a set What is the Application in Sport?
threshold). The graphic to the
The flight phase is simply how long the athlete is in the
right highlights where the flight
air between their takeoff and landing. It is the outcome
phase is on the force-time curve. of every muscle action & generation of momentum that
occurs beforehand. In jumping sports, it could be useful
to know flight time. However, flight time is not used in
the calculation of SJ Jump Height at HD. Jump Height
is instead calculated using takeoff velocity, the industry
gold-standard.
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LANDING PHASE
What is it?
LANDING

The forth and final SJ phase is

the landing phase, which begins
at the instant the athlete makes

FORCE (N)
contact with the force plate after
the flight phase. In this phase the
athlete will apply a net impulse
that will equal the propulsion
impulse in order to decelerate the
COM from the velocity at which it
contacts the force plate at
through to zero. The landing
phase of the CMJ is considered
to have ended when the COM
velocity reaches zero again. The
graphic to the right highlights
where the landing phase is on the
force-time curve.
The landing velocity of an athlete
will greatly depend on Jump
Height, meaning the greater the
Jump Height, the greater the
landing velocity will be.
6 PHASES OF THE
0 1.0
1.4 1.55 1.81 2.42
COUNTERMOVEMENT JUMP
TIME (S)
What is the Application in Sport?
The landing phase is important and applicable for
almost every sport. Landing has always been a huge
focus, especially to reduce the risk of lower limb
injuries. With bilateral force plates, the landing phase
can show discrepancies between the two limbs
eccentric capacity and the ability to decelerate.
For example, in the graphic on the bottom left, the
individual who jumped in this example eccentrically
produced more force in his/her right limb during the
landing phase, indicating that he/she may favor that
right limb over the left. When looking at force plate
metrics after an athlete jumps, relative peak landing
can also play a crucial role in reducing the risk of injury
as well as a useful tool in return to play protocol. In the
HD Software, relative peak landing force is reported as
a %. 500% indicates a landing force of 5x system
weight.
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ECCENTRIC UTILIZATION RATIO

What is it?
As mentioned previously, the SJ can be used in conjunction with the CMJ to calculate EUR, which
is calculated by dividing CMJ Jump height by SJ Jump Height.

Utilizing the SJ alongside the CMJ in order to evaluate levels of fatigue has been applied in some
studies. It has been suggested that the SJ can be more sensitive to fatigue detection due to
eliminating the SSC in specific populations. The CMJ has been sometimes noted to “mask” lower
extremity fatigue presence due to the involvement of the SSC, particularly when Jump Height
alone is monitored. The EUR provides insight into an athlete’s SSC ability. Testing athletes, both
with and without the SSC, can give the coach/practitioner a more detailed picture/story of his/her
current physical properties and what he/she may need to work on moving forward in training.

What is the Application in Sport?

To reiterate, if an athlete’s SJ height is significantly lower than his/her CMJ height, that is
theoretically a strong indication that the athlete is highly reliant on the SSC to produce explosive
movement and may be lacking concentric strength and/or power. Therefore, it may be sensible to
include lifts that develop these qualities into his/her training program.

McGuigan et al. (2006) found that EUR seems to be sensitive to changes in the type of training
being undertaken by an athlete. In order to accommodate tracking EUR over time and throughout
differing training periods, HD has developed an EUR report that allows practitioners to view the
changes in EUR overtime. This report can be helpful in tracking different training phases/blocks.

It has been suggested that a well-trained athlete has an ideal EUR of ~1.1, in which the CMJ score
should be at least ~1.1x (110%) that of the SJ (so >10% higher). For example, if an athlete
performs a 40 cm CMJ and a 35 cm SJ, they have a EUR of 1.14 (40 divided by 35). It is important
to note that EUR is dependent on a range of contextual factors resulting in a variety of EUR values.

For example, McGuigan et al. (2006) also concluded that athletes who compete in rugby and
soccer appear to have higher EUR values when compared to other sports, which may correlate to
the type of activity they are required to execute within their specific sport. As with any
performance metric, EUR needs to be viewed as a part of an overall picture for monitoring an
athlete and his/her profile, not just in isolation.

McGuigan, M. R., Doyle, T. L. A., Newton, M., Edwards, D. J., Nimphius, S., & Newton, R. U. (2006). Eccentric
utilization ratio: Effect of sport and phase of training. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research,
20(4), 992. https://doi.org/10.1519/r-19165.1
 PAGE 10

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

Again, no one metric should be looked at in isolation when
monitoring an athlete’s performance and progress.
Monitoring, benchmarking, profiling, or return to play are
all examples of how you can use the SJ to help drive an
athlete’s performance. However, as previously alluded to;
many factors go into producing the output of a SJ. As
Aragón-Vargas and Gross (1997) introduced in their
theoretical model of relevant factors in jumping
performance (image to the right), there are a multitude of
variables that go into jump performance. Their model
highlights that there are different levels of analysis that
are made up of interrelated variables which results in the
jumping performance or in the case of the SJ; Jump
Height or Time to Takeoff.

In terms of a SJ performance, below is an example model

which lays out possible levels of analysis and the “bigger
picture” that practitioners should keep in mind while
assessing athletes with the SJ.

Squat Jump
Performance
i.e. Jump Height or Time to Takeoff

This level enables us to see areas

that they may need improvement in,
Takeoff Velocity
Level I especially when we think about how
Driver Metrics these areas could improve parts of
their neuromuscular capacity.

L|R Average
Propulsive Squat Depth
Force
This level can help us understand
Level II how the athlete prepares and
Strategy Metrics executes their performance, aka the
strategy they use in order to reach
Dorsi Flexion Trunk Position that output metric.

This level can help us understand an

athlete's history and how it may be
Previous Injury
Anthropometrics Level III affecting his/her performance
History
Athlete History outcomes.

Aragón-Vargas, L. F., & Gross, M. M. (1997). Kinesiological factors in vertical jump performance:
Differences among individuals. Journal of Applied Biomechanics, 13(1), 24–44.
https://doi.org/10.1123/jab.13.1.24
 PAGE 11

SUMMARY
As discussed throughout this eBook, an athlete's ability to quickly accelerate from a resting
position is important for successful performance in most sports. The SJ assessment, while very
simplistic, is considered to be one of the most explosive tests due to its very short duration as
well as the high intensity required to perform the jump. By assessing your athletes' SJ, the
practitioner has a clearer insight to areas the athlete may lack in terms of neuromuscular function
and therefore can make more insightful decisions in his/her training program. Whether you're
using the SJ assessment for monitoring, benchmarking, profiling, or return to play, it can play a
critical role in programming for athletes of all levels.

The purpose of this eBook is to clarify any questions associated with the reasoning and
application of the SJ assessment in sports. The goal is to provide clear information in order to
help coaches, practitioners, and athletes understand why assessing the SJ can be useful in the
sports performance setting. If you are a coach or practitioner, we hope that you found value in
this eBook. If you are an athlete, hopefully this helps you better understand why you might
regularly perform this assessment.

If you have any questions or are more curious about HD you can click on our social links below or
reach out on our customer support page, we would love to connect and answer any questions. If
you are interested in the HD Force Plates you can also set up a demo with one of our team
members.
Next in the HD Playbook Series:
The Drop Jump

Created by Karah Bell & Drake Berberet

@HawkinDynamics HD Performance Team