Background and Purpose
Students represent the most valuable asset of any country, and schools serve as foundational environments for their mental and physical development. Participation in physical activities offers numerous benefits for students; however, increased engagement, especially at younger ages, is often accompanied by a heightened risk of injury, as supported by epidemiological data. Deficits in balance and motor function are recognized contributors to injury susceptibility. Balance and motor function can be effectively assessed using tools such as the Y-Balance Test and the Functional Movement Screen (FMS). Among the interventions aimed at enhancing balance, functional exercises have shown promise. Given the elevated injury risk among students and the critical role of balance and motor function in injury prevention, alongside a paucity of research in this area, the present study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of functional exercises on lower and upper limb balance and FMS scores in students identified as prone to injury.
 
Method
The study population comprised students aged 10 to 13 years in Milajerd. From this population, 60 students identified as injury-prone—based on scoring below 14 on the Functional Movement Screening test—were selected as the research sample. Sample size determination was conducted using G*Power software, with an ANCOVA test indicating a minimum of 52 participants; to account for potential attrition, 60 students were recruited. After baseline assessments, participants were randomly assigned to control and experimental groups. The experimental group underwent supervised functional training for eight weeks, while the control group maintained their usual physical activities.
Lower limb balance was assessed via the Y-Balance Test. Participants stood on their dominant leg at the center of the testing apparatus, with hands on hips, and reached with the non-dominant leg in three directions: anterior, posterior-internal, and posterior-external, performing three repetitions per direction. The total lower limb balance score was calculated by averaging the three directional reaches, dividing by leg length, and multiplying by 100.
Upper limb balance was similarly evaluated using the Y-Balance Test in a push-up position. Participants placed their dominant hand at the center and reached with the non-dominant hand in three directions: medial, inferior-external, and superior-external, with three repetitions each. The total upper limb balance score was computed by averaging the three reaches, dividing by arm length, and multiplying by 100.
Motor performance was assessed using the Functional Movement Screen (FMS), which included five linear lunge movements, step-over obstacle, shoulder mobility, straight leg raise, and rotational stability on both sides, as well as two deep squat movements and stability swimming. Each movement was scored from 0 to 3 based on quality, with the sum of all seven movements constituting the final FMS score.
Data analysis involved covariance analysis and paired t-tests using SPSS version 26.
 
Results
Paired t-tests revealed significant within-group improvements in the experimental group after eight weeks of intervention. Specifically, FMS scores increased significantly (T = 26.05, p < 0.001). Lower limb Y-Balance scores improved significantly in all three directions: anterior (T = 14.2, p < 0.001), posterior-internal (T = 11.51, p < 0.001), and posterior-external (T = 13.53, p < 0.001). Similarly, upper limb Y-Balance scores showed significant gains in medial (T = 11.84, p < 0.001), inferior-external (T = 4.52, p < 0.001), and superior-external (T = 16.91, p < 0.001) directions. No significant changes were observed in the control group (p > 0.05).
Covariance analysis controlling for pre-test scores demonstrated significant between-group differences at post-test. The total FMS score showed a large effect size (ES = 0.86, p < 0.001, F = 367.19). Lower limb Y-Balance scores differed significantly in anterior (ES = 0.74, p < 0.001, F = 166.18), posterior-internal (ES = 0.68, p < 0.001, F = 120.96), and posterior-external (ES = 0.63, p < 0.001, F = 100.93) directions. Upper limb Y-Balance scores also differed significantly in medial (ES = 0.66, p < 0.001, F = 113.26), inferior-external (ES = 0.19, p < 0.001, F = 13.36), and superior-external (ES = 0.77, p < 0.001, F = 200.72) directions.
 
Conclusion
This study investigated the impact of functional exercises on the functional movement and balance screening scores of students identified as prone to injury. The results indicate that functional training effectively enhances both motor performance and balance in the upper and lower limbs of these students. Such improvements are critical in reducing injury risk. Physical education teachers and corrective exercise specialists are encouraged to incorporate functional exercise protocols into their training regimens to mitigate injury vulnerability among students.
 
Article message
Functional training significantly improves motor skills and balance in injury-prone students, thereby playing a vital role in injury prevention. It is recommended that physical education professionals and corrective exercise specialists implement these training protocols to reduce injury risk in vulnerable student populations.
Ethical consideration
This study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee under code IR.BASU.REC.1402.103.
Authors’ contributions
The authors contributed equally.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
 
Acknowledgment
The authors express their sincere gratitude to all participants who contributed to this study.