Acute Effects of FIFA 11+ and Running-Based Dynamic Warm-Up Program on Balance Ability and Jump Performance: A Pilot Study

OBJECTIVES This study was conducted to compare and analyze the acute effects of the FIFA 11+ and a runningbased dynamic warm-up (RDW) program on static balance, dynamic balance, and jump performance in healthy male college recreational athletes.METHODS Ten healthy male college recreational athletes participated in this study and completed both warmup protocols in a randomized crossover design. IMU-derived static balance indices were assessed during a single-leg stance with eyes closed using a single thoracic inertial measurement unit (IMU)-based wearable sensor system. Dynamic balance was assessed using the left and right composite scores of the Y-Balance Test (YBT), and jump performance was measured using countermovement jump (CMJ) height. A two-way repeated measures analysis of variance (Two-way RM ANOVA) was performed to examine the main effects of condition and time and their interaction effects. Paired t-tests were additionally performed as post-hoc analyses for variables showing significant condition × time interactions.RESULTS Significant condition × time interactions were observed for both YBT-L (<i>F</i> = 8.06, <i>p</i> = 0.019) and YBT-R (<i>F</i> = 36.57, <i>p</i> < 0.001). Post-hoc paired <i>t</i>-tests showed that the FIFA 11+ condition significantly improved YBT-L from 93.20 ± 7.43% to 96.12 ± 6.75% (<i>t</i> = -5.343, <i>p</i> < 0.001) and YBT-R from 94.19 ± 6.82% to 97.54 ± 5.49% (<i>t</i> = -5.393, <i>p</i> < 0.001). In contrast, the RDW condition showed no significant pre-post changes in YBT-L (95.37 ± 6.60% to 95.79 ± 6.51%; <i>t</i> = -0.515, <i>p</i> = 0.619) or YBT-R (95.22 ± 7.65% to 94.48 ± 7.91%; <i>t</i> = 1.268, <i>p</i> = 0.237). No significant condition × time interactions or time main effects were observed for the thoracic IMU-derived static balance indices or CMJ performance.CONCLUSIONS The FIFA 11+ program showed a more favorable immediate response in dynamic balance performance, as assessed by the YBT, compared with the RDW program. However, neither warm-up protocol produced significant acute changes in thoracic IMU-derived static balance indices or CMJ performance. These findings suggest that FIFA 11+ may be a more effective warm-up strategy for acutely enhancing dynamic balance ability in male college recreational athletes, although the results should be interpreted cautiously due to the pilot nature and small sample size of the study.