Female Biomechanics & Anatomy
Pelvic tilt
WHAT it is
Anterior pelvic tilt (APT) is when the hip bones are tilted forward, causing the lower spine to curve and make the buttocks stick out. Females naturally tend to have more anterior pelvic tilt (7-10°) compared with males who sit closer to neutral (4-7°). On the other hand, posterior pelvic tilt (PPT) is where the pelvis tilts back and the buttocks are “tucked”, causing the pelvis to sit closer to neutral. This is similar to how we stand when balancing on the toeside.
WHY it’s relevant
A rider with more anterior pelvic tilt will naturally cause their weight to sit more towards the heel edge. When teaching beginners, someone with a lot of APT may flex at the hips excessively when on their heelside to try and keep their center of mass over the board and remain balanced, or they may struggle to bring their hips through over the toeside.
You may also notice this in an extended edge change movement pattern on a heelside turn, where the rider gets caught up in the completion of the turn as they flex down to manage the pressure. APT has caused their weight to go too far over the heel edge creating too high of an edge angle and causing them to get chatter, slip out, or become unbalanced.
Another example is in a flexed edge change movement pattern on a toe side turn where the rider flexes down as they initiate their turn. APT may cause their weight to go so far back over their heels as they flex, they end up having to compensate by over-flexing through the hips and end up initiating the turn with their upper body (typically the front shoulder).
HOW we can adapt for it
You may have heard the term “tuck your tail”, which refers to tilting your tailbone underneath you, causing PPT. When you do this you should feel your core and glutes engage. You can try this lying down with your knees flexed and feet flat on the floor. See if you can decrease the gap between your lower back and the floor. Tilting the pelvis like this brings it closer to a neutral position and can help to keep the weight from moving too far back over the heel edge, or help to bring the hips further over the toe edge, and keep the rider in a more balanced position.
Q-Angle
WHAT it is
The female pelvis tends to be wider than males, causing a larger Q-angle. The Q-angle is the angle between the quadriceps and the knee. This means that for females, the femur (thigh bone) is angled more towards the centreline of the body from where it is joined at the hip. Q-angles tend to range between 12°-20°, with males sitting at the lower end and females towards the upper end.
WHY it’s relevant
A higher Q-angle causes decreased strength in the quadriceps, and may contribute to the knees collapsing together under load. Repeated movement patterns such as steering movements, absorbing ollies or jumps, managing pressure in a turn, or absorbing variable/bumpy terrain can create a lot of repeated stress on the knee joint which could lead to discomfort or injury if the knees aren’t moving efficiently.
HOW we can adapt for it
Riders can decrease the potential injury risk that comes from a high Q-angle with the use of custom orthotics that support the arch of the foot. A collapsed arch or flat foot causes the knee to rotate inwards, increasing the Q-angle even more and strain on the knee. Supporting the arch will help the knee to track over the toes during flexion and load, and reduce the Q-angle slightly.
Body Composition
WHAT it is
Compared with males, females have less muscle mass and carry more body fat. If you take a male and female of the same height and weight, the body composition of the male will be leaner, consisting of more muscle mass and less body fat compared with the female.
WHY it’s relevant
This means males are around 40% stronger than females. When trying to generate power, for example creating pop, landing a jump, or dealing with pressure build up during a turn, a female will have to exert a lot more effort as they have less effective mass (muscles) but are still trying to move the same amount of body weight compared with a male of the same height and weight.
HOW we can adapt for it
Using tactics like taking more speed off a jump, adjusting stance, or utilising equipment effectively could help those with a higher body fat to muscle mass ratio. For example, using the rebound and snap of a snowboard in an ollie could help to achieve better or higher pop, rather than trying to rely just on the power of the back leg.
Centre of Mass (COM)
WHAT it is
A person’s COM is the centre point in their body where they can move around and continue to remain balanced. Females tend to have a lower COM relative to their height than males, due to being wider in the hips. A male’s COM tends to be around his belly button, whereas a female’s will be closer toward her hips. When stacked on top of their board, say in a basic stance, someone with a lower COM is more balanced than someone with a higher COM.
WHY it’s relevant
This stable position can become unstable when moving laterally over the snowboard. Let’s take a heel side turn for example. We angulate to keep our COM over the engaged edge by flexing at the hips slightly to bring the upper body over the board. Someone with their COM around their belly button will be able to use their torso as a lever to move their COM depending on the degree of flexion of the hips. Someone with a lower COM won’t be able to use this lever as effectively and may find they get caught up with their weight being too far inside the turn to match their speed or the terrain they are riding on. This could cause chatter, sliding out, or an unbalanced position.
HOW we can adapt for it
A way that this can be countered is by pulling the toes up and engaging the shin muscles to help create an edge angle, rather than using so much of the body to create an edge. This will help to keep the COM more stacked on top of the board and keep the rider in a more balanced position.