Kinetics of Human Motion

Written by the foremost authority on the subject, Kinetics of Human Motion is the sequel and companion to the 1998 text Kinematics of Human Motion. World-renowned biomechanics expert Vladimir Zatsiorsky has written Kinetics of Human Motion to be an indispensable reference for human movement professionals.

Although biomechanical analysis of human motion can be conducted on different structural levels, this book focuses on the examination of forces that create entire body motion. By examining the forces that create entire body motion, the text develops the biomechanical knowledge of the reader. Kinetics of Human Motion is divided into six chapters that cover external contact forces, statics, kinematic chains, inertial characteristics of the body, dynamics of human motion and work, and energy in human motion. Readers will learn about the following:

Three-dimensional analysis of forces and movements
- Kinetics of multilink chains
- Stability of equilibrium
- Inertial properties of the human body
- Joint torques and forces
- Inverse problem of dynamics

This text is advanced and assumes some knowledge of algebra and calculus, yet the emphasis is clearly on understanding physical concepts, not mathematical formulae. The book features helpful refreshers of basic mathematical concepts and kinesiology and other movement-related topics to facilitate reader comprehension of the topics presented.

Kinetics of Human Motion is packed with illustrations and equations to help clarify and reemphasize the main concepts; it also contains review problems, applied research problems, end-of-chapter questions, and references throughout. For a more rounded understanding of the concepts, each chapter includes “From the Literature” elements, which support the theories discussed while offering other viewpoints.

This is the second book in a three-book series that will cover the entire range of biomechanics of human motion. Kinematics of Human Motion was the first book; this book, Kinetics of Human Motion, covers the analysis of entire body motion; the muscle biomechanics will be covered in the third volume of the series.