Leg dominance reflects the preferential use of one leg over another and is typically attributed to asymmetries in the neural circuitry. Detecting leg dominance effects on motor behavior, particularly during balancing exercises, has proven difficult. The current study applied a principal component analysis (PCA) on kinematic data, to assess bilateral asymmetry on the coordinative structure (hypothesis H1) or on the control characteristics of specific movement components (hypothesis H2). Marker-based motion tracking was performed on 26 healthy adults (aged 25.3 ± 4.1 years), who stood unipedally on a multiaxial unstable board, in a randomized order, on their dominant and non-dominant leg. Leg dominance was defined as the kicking leg. PCA was performed to determine patterns of correlated segment movements (“principal movements” PM_ks). The control of each PM_k was characterized by assessing its acceleration (second-time derivative). Results were inconclusive regarding a leg-dominance effect on the coordinative structure of balancing movements (H1 inconclusive); however, different control (p = 0.005) was observed in PM₃, representing a diagonal plane movement component (H2 was supported). These findings supported that leg dominance effects should be considered when assessing or training lower-limb neuromuscular control and suggest that specific attention should be given to diagonal plane movements.

Leg dominance has been reported as one potential risk factor for lower-limb injuries in recreational downhill skiers. The current study proposed and tested two possible mechanisms for a leg dominance effect on skiing injuries—imbalance of the knee muscle strength and bilateral asymmetry in sensorimotor control. We hypothesized that the knee muscle strength (Hypothesis 1; H1) or postural control (Hypothesis 2; H2) would be affected by leg dominance. Fifteen well-experienced recreational downhill skiers (aged 24.3 ± 3.2 years) participated in this study. Isometric knee flexor/extensor muscle strength was tested using a dynamometer. Postural control was explored by using a kinematic principal component analysis (PCA) to determine the coordination structure and control of three-dimensional unipedal balancing movements while wearing ski equipment on firm and soft standing surfaces. Only H2 was supported when balancing on the firm surface, revealing that when shifting body weight over the nondominant leg, skiers significantly changed the coordination structure (p < 0.006) and the control (p < 0.004) of the lifted-leg movements. Based on the current findings, bilateral asymmetry in sensorimotor control rather than asymmetry in strength seems a more likely mechanism for the previously reported effect of leg dominance on lower-limb injury risk in recreational downhill skiers.

Walking stability is considered a necessary physical performance for preserving independence and preventing falls. The current study investigated the correlation between walking stability and two clinical markers for falling risk. Principal component analysis (PCA) was applied to extract the three-dimensional (3D) lower-limb kinematic data of 43 healthy older adults (69.8 ± 8.5 years, 36 females) into a set of principal movements (PMs), showing different movement components/synergies working together to accomplish the walking task goal. Then, the largest Lyapunov exponent (LyE) was applied to the first five PMs as a measure of stability, with the interpretation that the higher the LyE, the lower the stability of individual movement components. Next, the fall risk was determined using two functional motor tests—a Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) and a Gait Subscale of Performance-Oriented Mobility Assessment (POMA-G)—of which the higher the test score, the better the performance. The main results show that SPPB and POMA-G scores negatively correlate with the LyE seen in specific PMs (p ≤ 0.009), indicating that increasing walking instability increases the fall risk. The current findings suggest that inherent walking instability should be considered when assessing and training the lower limbs to reduce the risk of falling.