Can the use of handheld extra weights improve standing long jump performance

The study of the role of extra load in long jump has been suggested by a piece of historic information according to which long jumpers in ancient Greece used weights – halteres. The subject sample included 52 first year full time students of the Faculty of Kinesiology of the University of Zagreb. The study focused on determining whether the result of standing long jumps can be improved by the use of weights in arm swing. Kinesiological treatment was applied between the initial and the final measurement, with two training sessions a week consisting of ten standing long jumps with swinging arms and a 1 to 2 kg additional load for the purpose of adaptation to the swing with an extra load. Initial measurement did not show any statistically significant difference between jumps with and without loads, whereas during final measurement the jumps were significantly longer with the use of extra weights (251.10 vs. 256.53 cm).