Jump testing: Looking at metrics that matter and learning from some of the best jumpers in the world with Eric Leidersdorf

This week’s guest on the Pacey Performance Podcast is Eric Leidersdorf, Director of Biomechanics at P3 in Santa Barbara, California. He’s been with P3 for nearly 11 years, and he and his team oversee biomechanical assessment processes from data collection acquisition through to analytics. Eric recently earned a Master of Science in Data Science at Columbia University and is leading P3’s data analytics efforts to develop new insight into athletic performance and injury mechanisms. Eric is here to talk about his considerable experience in jump testing, including how he first got into the industry and how biomechanical roles are growing in US sport. On testing, Eric discusses why coaches and sports scientists assess jumps and the basis this provides. There’s also insight into metrics, including the ones Eric believes matter most, how they connect to performance on court or the field, and how to gather them from athletes performing in different roles and with different body types. Eric also talks about the reliability of assessment tools such as markerless motion capture, and the difficulty of sharing data as a private organisation. Moving onto the training side, we also discuss what other sports can learn about jumping from basketball, and how training is affected by movement strategy. Further expertise comes from Eric’s views on countermovement jump strategies, whether testing strategies can be grouped into categories, and how training differs between vertical and lateral jumps. We round out the episode with Eric’s views on the future of sports science technology and the future of jump testing, including force plates. For all this and much, much more, hit the play button now. This week’s topics: Why we assess jumps and the basis they give us The links between metrics collected and what happens on court or the field The difficulty of sharing data as a private organisation The reliability of assessment tools such as markerless motion capture Eric’s view on the metrics that matter, and which ones to measure for different athletes What we can learn about jumping from insights into basketball How training is affected by movement strategy Whether testing strategies can be grouped into certain categories How training differs between vertical and lateral jumps Eric’s views on the future of sports science technology The future of jump testing