Importance of Kinesiology in Sports

Knowledge of kinesiology is of great practical value to coaches, physical education teachers and physiotherapists. The textbook lists thirteen ways in which it is important in sports and physical education:

1. Analysing human motion. It gives future coaches, trainers and teachers a clear insight into the analysis of human movement, helping them see how motor skills and techniques can be improved for successful participation.
2. Learning and improvement of motor skills. It lets a coach understand the nature and effects of each activity and so select intelligently the exercises that will raise a skill towards perfection — for example, teaching correct walking and running patterns.
3. Applying an anatomic background to prevent injuries. Understanding the nature and mechanism of common musculoskeletal injuries allows preventive conditioning, flexibility and strengthening work, and safer landing, falling and catching; the same knowledge helps re-educate weak muscles during rehabilitation.
4. Ensuring economy of movement. It helps analyse energy use and the timing of muscular contraction so that unnecessary movement is cut out, which matters most in long-duration activities.
5. Ensuring effectiveness of movement. It helps recognise awkward versus skilful movement and correct faults so that movement efficiency is achieved — for example, refining technique during a weightlifting snatch.
6. Aiding clinical purposes such as postural analysis, corrective exercise and rehabilitation — identifying postural errors and correcting them with suitable exercises.
7. Designing and teaching exercise and conditioning. It guides the improvement of body structure and general fitness through well-designed routine exercise — for example, teaching the correct position for sit-ups.
8. Discovering and recognising the underlying principles of movement. It teaches which bones, muscles and joints take part in a movement, how bones act as anatomic levers and muscles provide the force to move them, and how gravity and other forces affect the muscular system.
9. Designing and teaching fundamental movements — the normal movements and body mechanics of daily life, a concern shared by both physical educators and therapists.
10. Acquiring self-realisation about one's own performance. It helps match the performer to the activity — for instance, a basketball player analysing whether to improve their jumping.
11. Enabling effective teaching of motor skills, both fundamental and specialised, by perfecting both the performance and the performer. …