Can a 120 bpm beat change how unstable ankles land?
In 20 men with functional ankle instability, adapting to auditory rhythms—especially 120 bpm—shifted drop-landing torques toward a more proximal (hip/knee) strategy versus no-beat, 60, or 180 bpm.
Source
Effects of auditory rhythmic adaptation on lower limb joint mechanics during single-leg drop landings in individuals with functional ankle instability
Study at a glance
- Design
- Human experiment — Within-subject drop-landing study: 20 men with FAI after auditory rhythmic adaptation (no beat, 60/120/180 bpm); two-way repeated-measures ANOVA (side × rhythm)
- N
- N=20 · 20 male FAI participants; unstable vs stable limb compared across four rhythm conditions
- Population
- Young men with functional ankle instability (mean age 23.5 years; CAIT 19.2 unstable vs 28.5 stable)
- Outcome
- GRF, joint torque, stiffness, and RoM during 30 cm single-leg drop landings
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What they did
After a time-interval reproduction check, participants did single-leg drop landings from 30 cm under no rhythm and 60/120/180 bpm while Vicon cameras (100 Hz) and a force plate recorded kinematics and GRF; two-way repeated-measures ANOVA tested side × rhythm.
What they found
Side affected GRF, torque, and stiffness (p < 0.05). Rhythm affected hip/knee RoM, stiffness, and torque, with side×rhythm interactions on stiffness and torque. 120 bpm favored a proximal-dominant torque redistribution (higher hip/knee extension and ankle plantarflexion torques on the stable side).
The limits
What it doesn't show
A lab landing protocol in 20 young men cannot prove that 120 bpm metronomes prevent real-world ankle sprains or that the effect generalizes to women, older adults, or sport play.
Key terms
- Functional ankle instability (FAI)
- Recurrent giving-way after sprain, indexed here with the Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool.
- Rhythmic adaptation
- Listening to a metronome beat (60/120/180 bpm) then landing in time after a reproduction check.
- Drop landing
- Stepping off a 30 cm platform onto one leg with hands on hips.
- GRF
- Ground reaction force recorded from a force plate during landing.
- Proximal-dominant strategy
- Greater hip/knee extension torque contribution relative to the ankle.
- CAIT
- Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool; unstable side 19.20 vs stable 28.50 in this sample.
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Quiz yourself
How many FAI men were tested?
Common questions
Who was tested?
20 men with FAI (age 23.50 ± 0.76 years).
Which beat helped most?
120 bpm, via a proximal-dominant torque-redistribution strategy.
What statistics were used?
Two-way repeated-measures ANOVA (rhythm × limb).
How was rhythm adaptation checked?
Time-interval reproduction paradigm.
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