Injury prevention in fitness and strength training. Technology for musculoskeletal load optimization

Fitness and strength training form an increasingly popular sports domain, and participation in fitness activities brings along many positive health effects. However, fitness and strength training participants are dealing with a large amount of musculoskeletal injuries. To prevent fitness injuries, research on injury details, associated factors and potential prevention methods is needed. In the first part of this thesis, common fitness injuries and associated factors were identified. In addition, biomechanical factors that influence the joint and muscle loading of the shoulder during the injury-prone bench press exercise were investigated in a laboratory study. New technological developments provide the opportunity to monitor injury risk in the gym instead of in the lab. Therefore, in the second part of this thesis, technical solutions that could be used in the gym for injury prevention were explored. A combination of markerless motion capture with musculoskeletal modeling was explored for monitoring musculoskeletal loads in the gym. In addition, a mobile application that provides strength athletes with feedback on their personal muscle load during their workout was developed and tested. This application may contribute to the prevention of muscle overload injuries.