Abstract

An observational study was done to compare two different Sit and Reach Test as a measurement of hamstring flexibility in the female college students. The purpose of the study was to determine the relationship between the two different types of Sit and Reach tests and hamstring flexibility because the test is used as a measure of hamstring flexibility in young females.
Methods: Goniometric measurements, Back Saver Sit and Reach Test and Modified Back Saver Sit and Reach Test, were performed and scores were recorded. After that, subjects were asked to perform a 5 minute warm up and static stretch routine in which subjects had to do 2 minutes of jogging followed by rest period for one minute and again subjects were asked to do jogging for next 2 minutes, emphasizing lower body. Immediately after which, the flexibility tests were performed a counter-balanced design. Flexibility tests were performed on the same day with rest period of 20 minutes in between tests. After demonstration, one practice trial and three tests were performed for each of the measures. Average of three tests was used for all tests.
Results: The results indicate that this Back Saver Sit and Reach Test produce reasonably accurate and stable measures of hamstring flexibility. Moreover, it appears that this test is safe and acceptable alternative to the Sit and Reach test as a measure of hamstring flexibility in young females. Conclusion: Our analysis indicated that the BSSR tests were highly related to hamstring flexibility. In contrast, the MBSSR test was not related to hamstring flexibility for either the right or left leg (r= 0.38 and 0.40 respectively). These findings show that BSSR test is valid for measuring hamstring flexibility. The MBSSR test detected individual differences in the flexibility of hamstrings of these female students. Thus, the results confirm that BSSR test measures hamstring flexibility better than MBSSR in young female subjects.