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The Power of Data-Driven Biomechanics in Optimizing Athletic Performance and Injury Prevention

Blog| ByJoe Resendez

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A Slamball player in mid-air prepares to dunk while another player attempts to block. The crowd watches in the background. A screenshot on the right displays Demotu data.

In the realm of professional sports, the pursuit of peak performance and injury prevention is relentless. As a seasoned athletic trainer and strength and conditioning coach, I’ve worked with athletes across high-impact sports including NBA basketball, XFL football, and Slamball, and witnessed firsthand the transformative impact data-driven decision-making can have.

By leveraging advanced tools like motion capture, force plates, strength testing, and GPS technology, we’ve revolutionized how we approach athlete assessments, offering precise insights that optimize performance and mitigate injury risks. Among these, motion capture and movement analysis stand out as critical tools for understanding the biomechanics of athletic performance, allowing us to objectively pinpoint deficiencies, compensations, and injury risks.

This article will explore how these insights can be applied to enhance athletic output and resilience through practical strategies.

By leveraging advanced tools like motion capture, force plates, strength testing, and GPS, we’ve revolutionized how we approach athlete assessments, offering precise insights that optimize performance and mitigate injury risks. Share on X

Understanding the Challenges of Training Athletes

Athletes in attacking sports need an exceptional combination of speed, agility, and explosiveness. They must navigate rapid changes of direction, absorb intense collisions and landings, and execute high-powered movements—all while minimizing injury risks. Accurately assessing these demands is critical, yet it presents unique challenges for clinicians and performance staffs.

Through my experience working with professional basketball, football, and Slamball players, I’ve observed these challenges firsthand:

  • NBA players contend with the demands of high acceleration and deceleration
  • XFL athletes face frequent high-impact collisions.
  • Slamball players contend with aerial attacks and force absorption during landings.

Across all sports, the added challenge for a performance staff is completing the necessary assessments in a timely manner without compromising quality. These sport-specific demands often lead to significant issues in two key areas:

  1. Elevated Injury Risks: Frequent sprinting, cutting, jumping, and landing mechanics place undue stress on the foot-ankle complex, knees, lumbar spine, hips, and shoulders. Athletes in professional sports frequently experience:
    • Soft Tissue injuries from high-intensity sprinting and acceleration/deceleration cycles.
    • Patellar tendonitis and Achilles tendonitis from repetitive loading during sprints, jumps, and landings.
    • Ankle and Knee Injuries due to high-force deceleration and cutting movements.
    • Shoulder instability from repetitive overhead actions and impacts.
  1. Barriers in Athlete Assessment Strategies: Clinicians and performance staff often deal with limited bandwidth to assess large rosters comprehensively. Manual assessments, while effective, are time-consuming and may lack the objectivity needed to guide modern interventions.

Traditional, subjective methods also rely heavily on visual observation and practitioner experience, which can lead to inconsistencies and missed nuances in movement patterns. This lack of precision often results in interventions that fail to address the root causes of inefficiencies or injury risks. In my experience, overcoming these barriers requires a shift from traditional methods to objective, data-driven technologies for movement analysis.

Traditional, subjective methods also rely heavily on visual observation and practitioner experience, which can lead to inconsistencies and missed nuances in movement patterns. Share on X

Training Challenges Observed in Professional Sports

Through my work, I’ve identified several recurring issues in professional athletes. These include:

  • Movement Asymmetries: Imbalances between limbs often lead to compensatory patterns that increase injury risk.
  • Poor Hip and Ankle Mobility: Restricted mobility compromises an athlete’s ability to generate power and maintain stability.
  • Lack of Trunk Control: Insufficient core stability and control can disrupt movement efficiency, compromise force transfer, and increase the risk of injuries during dynamic actions.
  • Weak Proprioception: Diminished body awareness hinders coordination and balance during complex movements.
  • Inconsistent Explosive Power: Variability in force production directly impacts performance in jumping, sprinting, and cutting.

For example, in the XFL, I frequently observed knee instability during deceleration movements, which is a critical factor in non-contact injuries. Similarly, in the NBA, explosive jumping and landing mechanics were often compromised, leading to recurrent ankle injuries, tendonitis, and low back issues. In Slamball—where athletes face unique demands from continuous jumping and aerial collisions—shoulder instability and posterior chain weaknesses were prevalent.
A SlamBall player in a blue uniform jumps high to score on a trampoline court, while on the right, two other players in gray and black uniforms compete for the ball during an intense game. The crowd watches in the background.

Soft tissue injuries, particularly hamstring strains, also presented a consistent challenge in the XFL, driven by repetitive, high-speed sprints. Addressing these issues required targeted solutions that were both efficient and scalable.

Steps Taken to Address These Challenges

To effectively manage the complex needs of these athletes, I needed a tool that was robust, repeatable, reliable, and could seamlessly integrate into our workflow while providing precise, actionable insights. The Demotu app, an advanced movement analysis tool, proved to be the ideal solution. Its ability to provide real-time, 3D biomechanical insights made it a cornerstone for addressing mobility and stability deficiencies.

Screenshot of Demotu showing assessments and scores. Left panel displays a summary and recommended exercises. Right panel shows overhead squat analysis with scores for hip, knee, and ankle mobility, each highlighted in circular progress indicators.

Why Demotu?

I needed a solution that was both reliable and scalable to efficiently assess movement patterns, identify deficiencies, and prioritize interventions. Demotu quickly became an invaluable tool, offering several distinct advantages. Its automated assessments streamlined key movement screens, including the Overhead Squat, Single Leg Balance, Lateral Lunge, Overhead Press, Single Leg Hinge, and Countermovement Jump.

By automating these evaluations, Demotu significantly reduced the time and resources typically required, allowing for faster and more efficient assessments. The app’s clear, actionable insights also improved player attention and compliance, keeping athletes engaged and motivated throughout the process.

Additionally, Demotu’s ability to capture precise 3D keypoints eliminated subjective biases, enabling accurate tracking of joint angles, compensations, and asymmetries. Whether evaluating an entire roster or focusing on individual athletes, the platform seamlessly accommodated both team-wide and personalized approaches, making it an indispensable tool in optimizing athlete performance.

Demotu’s ability to capture precise 3D keypoints eliminated subjective biases, enabling accurate tracking of joint angles, compensations, and asymmetries. Share on X

Implementation Process

  1. Preseason Evaluations: During preseason, we conducted comprehensive movement screenings for all athletes. Demotu analyzed each athlete’s movement strategies and identified compensations, providing a detailed baseline of their biomechanics and actionable insights for targeted improvements.
  2. Regular Check-Ins: Throughout the season, we used Demotu for periodic re-assessments, conducted in 4-6 week increments, to track progress and adapt programs as needed. These regular evaluations allowed us to ensure athletes were meeting benchmarks and addressing any emerging deficiencies.
  3. Targeted Interventions: Based on assessment data, we developed targeted interventions by prescribing individualized corrective exercises tailored to each athlete’s needs. For example, we focused on improving hip stability and reducing knee valgus through targeted glute activation and core stability exercises. To address landing mechanics and ankle dorsiflexion limitations, we implemented strengthening exercises, dynamic balance work, and plyometric training. Emphasizing posterior chain activation also proved critical in enhancing overall movement efficiency. In Slamball, our findings guided us to address specific needs by enhancing controlled body positioning during aerial techniques, which helped alleviate shoulder issues and optimize force absorption during landings.

Two athletes in mid-air during a slam dunk in a brightly lit indoor basketball arena. One wears green and yellow, the other red and black. Spectators are visible in the background.

Results Observed: Data and Anecdotes

The impact of integrating Demotu into our training programs was both measurable and transformative:
Data

  • A 25% reduction in non-contact lower extremity injuries during an XFL season.
  • A 10% increase in vertical jump height among players following targeted programs.
  • A 20% improvement in shoulder stability metrics.

Anecdotes

  • Improved Athlete Buy-In: Athletes were more engaged and motivated when they could see visual representations of their movement patterns and track their progress.
  • Return to Play Scenarios: Targeted interventions led to improved return-to-play outcomes for injured athletes. Comparisons to baseline data and the ability to track progress throughout the RTP process provided improved decision-making and guided progressions.

A dashboard showing three line graphs labeled Aggregate, Countermovement Jump, and Squat. Each graph displays performance trends from December through November, with varying percentages on the y-axis.

Personal Insights: The Journey to Data-Driven Biomechanics

As an athletic trainer and strength and conditioning coach, transitioning to a data-driven approach has been a game-changer. Tools like Demotu allow us to move beyond traditional methods, empowering both practitioners and athletes. The ability to visualize movement patterns fosters collaboration and accountability, while objective data ensures precision in program design.

Athletes have described the process as eye-opening. One XFL player shared: “Seeing my knee instability on the app made me realize why I was struggling with certain drills. Fixing it wasn’t just about getting better—it made me faster and more confident on the field.”

Embracing the Future of Sports Performance

The integration of advanced movement analysis tools like Demotu represents the future of athletic performance and injury prevention. By embracing data-driven biomechanics, we can enhance efficiency, drive performance, and safeguard athlete health across all levels of sport.

When profiling athletes, we often consider kinematics, kinetic forces, internal and external load as a blueprint. Demotu serves as a tool to help tie these elements together. Share on X

Demotu can also be a great addition to player profiling. When profiling athletes, we often consider kinematics, kinetic forces, internal and external load as a blueprint. Demotu serves as a tool to help tie these elements together, enabling a holistic approach to understanding and optimizing athlete performance and mitigating injury.

For professionals in the field, the takeaway is clear: adopting technologies that provide actionable insights into biomechanics is essential. Whether working with professional, collegiate, or recreational athletes, movement analysis holds the key to unlocking untapped potential and continue to push the limits of human performance.

Since you’re here…
…we have a small favor to ask. More people are reading SimpliFaster than ever, and each week we bring you compelling content from coaches, sport scientists, and physiotherapists who are devoted to building better athletes. Please take a moment to share the articles on social media, engage the authors with questions and comments below, and link to articles when appropriate if you have a blog or participate on forums of related topics. — SF


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Joe Resendez

Joe Resendez is the Head of Player Health and Performance for Slamball and Head Athletic Trainer for the San Antonio Brahmas. He has 15 years of NBA experience, including serving as Assistant Athletic Trainer and Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Los Angeles Clippers and as Head Athletic Trainer for the Sacramento Kings. He specializes in integrating biomechanics, movement analysis, corrective exercises, and manual therapy techniques to optimize performance and reduce injury risk.

Joe’s holistic approach to training focuses on enhancing mobility, stability, and sport-specific mechanics to improve athletic output and resilience. He holds a master’s degree in Exercise Physiology and certifications as a Certified Athletic Trainer (ATC) and Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS). Joe is passionate about leveraging cutting-edge technology to provide actionable insights for athlete profiling and performance enhancement.

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