(35) NORMATIVE DATA FOR THE STANDARD PUSH-UP TEST IN DIVISION I FEMALE STUDENT-ATHLETES

Current push-up norms for female athletes are limited to data derived from the modified push-up (MPU) protocol (pivot point is the knees) versus the standard push-up (SPU) protocol designed for men (pivot point is the toes), despite the load difference between push-up protocols being less than the gender strength gap and the potential for the SPU protocol to be more appropriate given their athletic status.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to present normative data for the SPU for healthy female collegiate student-athletes and compare SPU performance to their bench press to body weight ratio (BP-BW_R) and body mass index (BMI).

Methods: Ninety-nine Division I female student-athletes volunteered to complete a SPU protocol, including 21 field-hockey (19.1 ± 1.0 y; 165.9 ± 6.5 cm; 63.4 ± 6.5 kg), 18 softball (19.8 ± 1.6 y; 169.6 ± 7.1 cm; 73.5 ± 10.4 kg), 10 tennis (20.4 ± 0.8 y; 164.8 ± 8.8 cm; 61.0 ± 12.2 kg), 29 lacrosse (19.5 ± 1.4 y; 168.3 ± 6.9 cm; 66.4 ± 10.7 kg), 12 basketball (20.3 ± 1.6 y; 175.3 ± 8.8 cm; 74.1 ± 8.8 kg), and 9 volleyball (19.5 ± 1.4 y; 174.4 ± 9.9 cm; 68.0 ± 7.4 kg) players. Athletes completed as many repetitions as possible until failure using a SPU stance with toes serving as the pivot point, knees straight, feet together, wrists under the shoulders, and hands shoulder width apart. Correct form was modelled and verbally cued by trained test administrators. Athletes avoided strenuous activity the day prior and wore exercise attire to perform the SPU test following a standard warm-up during a pre-season battery of screening assessments. Clearance to participate was obtained from the head athletic trainer and team physician. Descriptive statistics and percentile (%T) distributions were calculated as mean ± standard deviation, and differences across BP-BW_R and BMI categories were calculated used an ANOVA using SPSS version 28 (IBM Corp, Armonk, NY).

Results: Average SPUs completed across all athletes was 17.5 ± 8.4, with the average score above the 50^th %T for the study sample (25^th %T = 12; 50^th %T = 16; 75^th %T = 22). Field hockey and basketball players completed the highest average (18.7 ± 8.9 and 18.4 ± 7.6, respectively), but there was no significant difference across sports (p > 0.05). SPUs completed was significantly correlated with BP-BW_R (r = 0.62, p < 0.01), with athletes showing a BP-BW_R more than 75% performing significantly more push-ups (p < 0.05). SPUs completed was significantly correlated with BMI (r = -0.23, p = 0.02), but no significant differences existed across BMI classifications (p > 0.05).

Conclusions: Average SPUs in the study sample fall within the ‘fair’ category compared to SPU norms for men of the same age range (and the ‘good’ category for MPU norms for females of the same age). The SPUs completed by female athletes is also greater than the SPU completed by females in the general population, including those who regularly engaged in resistance-training. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The binary gender format for push-up test administration and interpretation may not be accurate or appropriate for female athletes who have the physical ability and desire to perform the SPU test. The availability of SPU norms for female collegiate athletes is a useful resource for test interpretation.

Acknowledgements: None.