BJMB
Brazilian Journal of Motor Behavior
Special issue:
“Fatigue issue in the performance of motor skills”
!
Cemin et al.
2023
VOL.17
N.5
201 of 207
A single session of hip abductors resistance exercise until failure changes shank
muscle activation during landing tasks
FABRÍCIO CEMIN
1
| LUIZA P. CHAFFE
2
| CAMILA NODARI
1
| IURY BORGES
1
| LUAN FITARELLI
1
| JEAN
BIANCHESSE
1
| CLEBER S. O. JÚNIOR
3
| RODRIGO RODRIGUES
2,3
1
Laboratório de Fisiologia do Exercício e Avaliação Física, Centro Universitário da Serra Gaúcha, Caxias do Sul, RS, Brasil
2
Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Rio Grande, RS, Brasil
3
Instituto de Educação, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Rio Grande, RS, Brasil
Correspondence to:!Rodrigo Rodrigues
Instituto de Educação
Universidade Federal do Rio Grande
Av. Itália, Km 8, Campus Carreiros, Rio Grande, RS, Brasil, CEP 96203-900.
email: rodrigo.esef@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.20338/bjmb.v17i5.370
HIGHLIGHTS
• Greater degree of supination of the foot was observed
in single-leg landing
• Higher activation of tibialis anterior was observed in
double-leg landing
• Higher activation of peroneus longus was observed in
single-leg landing
• Hip abductors exercise until failure reduces peroneus
longus activation on landings.
ABBREVIATIONS
MVICs Maximal voluntary isometric contractions
PL Peroneus longus
RMS Root mean square
TA Tibialis anterior
PUBLICATION DATA
Received 13 06 2023
Accepted 21 08 2023
Published 30 09 2023
BACKGROUND: Weakness in the hip abductors can lead to lower limb misalignment and an
elevated risk of injury. This can result in compensatory mechanisms at the ankle to maintain
stability.
AIM: To verify the effects of a single session of hip abductors resistance exercise until failure
on the foot pronation and EMG amplitude of shank muscles (peroneus longus - PL; tibialis
anterior - TA) during landing tasks.
METHOD: Seventeen participants completed single-leg and double-leg landings both before
and after a single session of hip abductors resistance exercise until failure. The exercise
consisted of four sets of 10 repetitions maximum, with a 2-minute rest interval between each
set. Measurements of PL and TA EMG amplitude and degree of foot pronation were
performed during landings.
RESULTS: We observed a greater degree of supination of the foot during single-leg
compared to double-leg landing (p=0.006), without effect of exercise. Regarding TA EMG
amplitude, there was no exercise effect (p=0.951), with a higher amplitude observed in
double-leg compared to single-leg landing (p=0.001). EMG amplitude of PL was higher during
single-leg compared to double-leg landing (p=0.003) and the exercise significantly reduced its
activation in both tasks (p=0.032).
CONCLUSION: Single-leg and double-leg landings exhibited variations in mechanics and
activation patterns of the distal muscles. Following a single session of hip abductors
resistance exercise until failure, there was a reduction in PL activation during landing tasks.
This suggests that there were neuromuscular compensations occurring distally due to
alterations in the hip abductor muscles.
KEYWORDS: Hip abductors | EMG | Ankle | Kinematics | Landing
INTRODUCTION
The gluteal muscles are a group of three muscles that are responsible for the stability and mobility of the lower limbs. They are
anatomically divided into the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, and gluteus minimus
1
. The gluteus medius muscle is a key player in
pelvic stability and femoral movement control
2
. The gluteus medius is the primary hip abductor, accounting for 60% of the cross-sectional
area of the abductor group. The gluteus minimus accounts for 20% of the cross-sectional area, and the tensor fascia latae accounts for
11%
3
.
The hip abductors play a vital role in maintaining postural stability
4-6
. Weakness in the hip abductors has been identified as a
significant factor associated with lower limb injuries, including femoroacetabular impingement
7
, patellofemoral pain
8
, anterior cruciate
ligament rupture
9
, low back pain
10
, and ankle sprains people
11
. The muscles of the ankle and hip joints work together to control posture
and balance in a variety of movements, especially those involving anteroposterior and mediolateral instabilities. This synergy is essential
BJMB! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
Brazilian(Journal(of(Motor(Behavior(
(
Cemin et al.
2023
VOL.17
N.5
202 of 207
Special issue:
“Fatigue issue in the performance of motor skills”
for maintaining stability
12
.
Strong hip muscles are essential for maintaining ideal foot positioning during the heel strike phase
13
. Alterations or delays in
muscle responses of joints can lead to kinematic changes, which can increase the risk of injury
14
. The muscles of the proximal and distal
joints must work in harmony and have the coordination to maintain balance. The hip abductors play a vital role in stabilizing the trunk and
pelvis, and preventing knee valgus during single-leg tasks
4
. The peroneus longus stabilizes the forefoot when the heel lifts off the support
surface, while the tibialis anterior resists foot pronation
15
.
Previous studies have investigated whether inducing weakness in the hip abductor muscles would lead to alterations in the
ankle muscles, as this could result in a loss of postural stability
16, 17
. In line with this, Lee et al.
17
found that weakness in the hip
abductors induced by an exercise protocol in healthy subjects led to postural misalignment and early activation of the peroneus muscles
during unilateral landing. This demonstrated a compensatory effect to maintain foot stability and minimize the tendency for ankle
inversion
17
. However, it is important to investigate whether such compensation also occurs in bilateral tasks, and whether these tasks
elicit different activation responses in the distal muscles of the lower limb. This could aid in comprehending the involvement of distal
muscles in upholding stability. Consequently, it may also shed light on the potential lower limb injuries arising from these compensatory
mechanisms.
Therefore, the present study aimed to examine the effects of a single session of hip abductors resistance exercise until failure
on foot kinematics and shank muscle activation during landing tasks in healthy subjects. We hypothesized that exercise session until
failure would modify the EMG responses of distal muscles, mainly during single-leg tasks due to the increased stability demands.
METHODS
Participants
A total of 17 participants (9 females and 8 males) with no history of lower limb injury and a minimum of 3 months of strength
training experience participated in the study after promotion on social media, at gyms, and on the university campus (age: 28.41 ± 6.05
years; body mass: 71.91 ± 12.88 kg; height: 1.69 ± 0.08 m; BMI = 24.91 ± 2.60 kg/m²; body fat percentage: 22.57 ± 0.04%). All
participants trained with a minimum frequency of twice a week and were not engaged in any other high-volume training modality. On
average, our participants had 6.11 ± 4.24 years of strength training experience. All participants provided informed consent before the
study, and the study protocol was approved by the university's research ethics committee (approval number 76759817.7.0000.5668).
Experimental Design
Participants visited the laboratory on two separate days, with at least seven days between visits. On the first day, participants
completed the Informed Consent Form, underwent body composition assessment, and performed a 10-repetition maximum test for hip
abduction exercise in the side-lying position. This exercise was selected based on a previous study conducted in the laboratory, which
demonstrated higher activation of the hip abductor muscles during this exercise
18
.
On the second day, participants underwent the following assessments: (i) maximal voluntary isometric contraction of ankle
dorsiflexors and evertors; (ii) kinematics and EMG parameters of the ankle muscles (peroneus longus - PL and tibialis anterior - TA)
during single-leg or double-leg landing tasks (randomly determined); (iii) hip abductor strength exercise until exhaustion. Landing tasks
were repeated after completing the exercise for comparison purposes.
Determination of exercise load
On the first day, the load for the side-lying hip abduction exercise was determined using the 10-repetition maximum test. Prior
to the test, each participant performed a warm-up for the target muscles, consisting of 15 hip abduction repetitions in the side-lying
position with a submaximal load. Participants were also familiarized with the controlled movement speed set at 60 beats per minute,
guided by a metronome. The load was determined through trial and error, with three attempts performed and a five-minute interval
between each attempt to minimize the effects of fatigue on the results
18
. In cases where the load could not be determined within the
three attempts, the assessment was rescheduled for a future session.
Maximal Voluntary Isometric Contraction
On the second day, maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVICs) were performed. The position for collecting the MVICs
were chosen to maximize the muscle activation of both muscles. For the ankle evertors, participants were seated with their hip and knee
extended and the dominant ankle in a neutral position. Participants were instructed to exert maximum force in ankle eversion against an