Sports that require overhead activities (volleyball, tennis, basketball) include
components such as rapid displacement, strength and movement control.Volleyball is also
called as an overhead sport in terms of the way it is played. In the realization of these
sports; Sub-parameters such as proprioceptive sense, strength, throwing rate, flexibility
play a role. During these activities, the shoulder and elbow joints are overloaded. To
meet this load, the joint must provide the necessary mobility and stability.
Proprioceptive sense in increasing the quality and width of movement as well as providing
dynamic joint stability in overhead sports; Increasing the range of motion of the joint,
reducing muscle stiffness and thus increasing flexibility are effective in providing
mobility. That's why it's important to develop them. Likewise, muscle strength should be
increased in order to maintain movement performance and prevent injuries. Performance is
the evaluation of how much the psychological, physiological and biomechanical
requirements required for a sportive activity are provided. Individual and team sports,
by their very nature, result in winning and losing. In this respect, it is important that
the performance is at the highest level. In addition to strength, speed is also an
important parameter in performance. With the programs made by combining these parameters,
sportive performance and athletic success can be increased. The ability to effectively
perform parameters such as throwing, throwing and hitting the ball in overhead sports
affects performance results. Athletes competing in branches where overhead movements
requiring high muscle activity are used intensively; In addition to strength and
flexibility, which are key components of performance, sensorimotor accuracy is also of
great importance.
Fascia; It is a body network that is the continuation of the connective tissue and is
shaped by stretching, and it surrounds all organs and body structures. If the fascial
tissue can be trained at the appropriate level (appropriate level of flexibility and
elasticity), it can be beneficial in terms of protection from injuries as well as
increasing sports performance. When we look at the literature, we see that the importance
of this issue has increased in recent years. Myofascial release is an up-to-date method
that appears to be effective in improving joint and fascia mobility, increasing body
awareness, and aiding muscle reduction. Myofascial release application has become popular
around the world in recent years, and it shows itself as one of the exercise trends of
athletes.The use of myofascial release techniques as an exercise method has increased in
recent years. Application; The effects on parameters such as strength, performance and
flexibility were investigated. Studies have focused more on the lower extremities and
acute effects. There is no study on the subject examining proprioceptive sensation in
volleyball players in the upper extremity. Therefore, our aim is to examine the chronic
effects of the application on shoulder and elbow joint mobility, sensorimotor function
and performance.
With the myofascial release application that we plan to do, we aim to improve these
parameters and thus provide the athletes with an alternative application method in terms
of preventing injuries and improving performance. When we review the literature, we are
the first study to examine the effectiveness of myofascial release in the upper extremity
and the long-term effects on athletes doing overhead activities.
For all these reasons, the aim of this study is; To examine the effect of 8-week
myofascial release application to the shoulder and elbow region on mobility, muscle
strength, joint position sense, force matching, performance and well-being, and to
examine the effect of the application at the 4th week, 8th week (end of the application),
and 6th month after the first evaluation. is to detect whether there is a change in these
parameters. In this study, the effect of myofascial release on shoulder and elbow joints
in overhead volleyball players will be investigated for the first time. We think that our
study will shed light on the studies to be done in healthy and symptomatic individuals
who are interested in sports where the upper extremity is at the forefront.