how can skateboarders jump off of high surfaces like buildings and over stairs without breaking their legs?
In: 4
Have you encountered the equation Force = mass * acceleration? Another way to write that is Force = mass * change in speed / time.
When landing, your change in speed is the speed you’re falling at the moment of impact, to zero (since you’re no longer falling). What matters though, is the time component. Since your mass and initial speed are already set, by the time you hit the ground, you’ve got the time variable left to work with.
Increasing time it takes to decelerate from your initial speed to zero, will proportionally reduce the forces acting on your body. Reducing the forces acting on your body directly reduces the risk of breaking bones. So slow your rate of impact, by making the landing take more time.
The main way people do this is by using their leg muscles to cushion the blow. You need to bend your knees and use your legs like shock absorbers.
Parkour rolls are just the flashier version of using your legs as shock absorbers.
TL;DR: Make the impact take more time. That directly reduces the forces on your body.
Latest Answers