scholarly journals The Effect of Static Stretching on Maximal Voluntary Contraction and Force-Time Curve Characteristics

2006 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 185-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christos Papadopoulos ◽  
Vasilios I. Kalapotharakos ◽  
Georgios Noussios ◽  
Konstantinos Meliggas ◽  
Evangelia Gantiraga

Objective:To examine the effect of static stretching on maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) and isometric force-time curve characteristics of leg extensor muscles and EMG activity of rectus femoris (RF), biceps femoris (BF), and gastrocnemius (GA).Design:A within subjects experimental design.Participants:Ten healthy students were tested after a jogging and a jogging/stretch protocol.Intervention:The stretching protocol involved a 10 min jog and seven static stretching exercises.Main Outcomes:Measurements included MVC, time achieved to MVC (TMVC), force at 100ms (F100), index of relative force (IRF), index of rate of force development (IRFD), and average integrated EMG activity (AEMG).Results:There were slight but no significant changes in MVC (1%), TMVC(4.8%), F100(7.8%), IRF (1%), and IRFD(3.5%) between measurement. A significant difference (21%;P< 0.05) in AEMG of RF was found.Conclusions:The present study indicated that a moderate volume of static stretching did not alter significantly the MVC and the isometric force-time curve characteristics. Neural inhibition, as it is reflected from AEMG of RF, did not alter MVC and isometric force-time curve characteristics.

1993 ◽  
Vol 74 (1) ◽  
pp. 170-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. Psek ◽  
E. Cafarelli

Coactivation is antagonist muscle activity that occurs during voluntary contraction. Recently, we showed that the extent of coactivity in the knee flexors decreases after a short period of resistance training of the knee extensors (8). The purpose of the present experiment was to study the time course of coactivation in the knee flexors during fatigue of the knee extensors. Ten male subjects performed repeated submaximal static leg extensions in a low-intensity long-duration and a high-intensity short-duration fatigue protocol until they could no longer produce the required force [time limit of endurance (Tlim)]. Maximal voluntary contraction (MVC), submaximal force, and surface electromyographic (EMG) activity were measured periodically. Vastus lateralis EMG increased progressively during fatigue of the extensor muscles (P < 0.05), resulting in a 38% change from control at Tlim. Biceps femoris EMG, which was our measure of coactivation, also increased by approximately 60% at Tlim in each protocol (P < 0.05). These observations lead us to conclude that a small but significant force loss during repeated static contractions to Tlim is due to an increase in antagonist activity. Moreover, the close correlation between the antagonist and agonist EMG supports the notion of a "common drive" to both motoneuron pools (10).


Diagnostics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 524
Author(s):  
Youngjin Lee ◽  
Minkyoung Kim ◽  
Haneul Lee

The present study was performed to assess the relationship between hand-held myotonometer MyotonPRO and shear wave elastography (SWE) measurements of lower limb muscle stiffness during resting and active voluntary contraction. Forty healthy young adults, (20 males and 20 females) participated in the study. The stiffness of each subject’s rectus femoris (RF), biceps femoris (BF), tibialis anterior (TA), and medial gastrocnemius (MG) was measured repeatedly by MyotonPRO and SWE. Moderate to strong correlations between the two methods’ measurements were found for both resting and active voluntary contraction. (r = 0.416–0.669, p < 0.05; r = 0.398–0.594, p < 0.05, respectively). Muscle stiffness at rest was significantly lower compared contraction in all four muscles measured by both methods (p < 0.05). Intra-rater reliabilities were generally lower when measurements were taken during contraction. Additionally, when compared by gender, muscle stiffness measured by MyotonPRO was significantly higher at rest in men compared to women, except for the TA. However, a significant difference was found in TA muscle stiffness by gender when measured with SWE. When muscles were contracted, all muscles showed significantly higher stiffness in men compared to women. There were moderate to good correlations in muscle stiffness between measurements of SWE and MyotonPRO at rest and during active voluntary contraction. Additionally, both instruments showed good intra-rater reliability.


2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 243-247
Author(s):  
Camila Brasileiro Azevedo Barros ◽  
Manoel da Cunha Costa ◽  
Antônio Gonçalves dos Santos Neto ◽  
José Hildemar Teles Gadelha ◽  
Brendha Stephany Rodrigues da Silva ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Introduction Muscle fatigue is characterized by reduced ability to produce maximum strength or power, and may differ between men and women. Changes in velocity of movement during exercise, and in the ability to produce strength after exercise, may help when comparing fatigue in men and women. Objective To analyze the differences between men and women in relation to number of repetitions, kinetics, kinematics and isometric force-time curve performance, and their respective muscle activation in horizontal leg press exercises. Methods Fifteen men and fifteen women underwent isometric force-time curve (Cf-t) and electromyographic (EMG) assessments before and after performing horizontal leg press exercises. The exercises were performed in three sets until voluntary exhaustion, at 70% maximal repetition. During the exercises, kinetic and kinematic variables were obtained by means of two force transducers, a linear position potentiometer and accelerometer adapted for the horizontal leg press and synchronized by a signal conditioning plate. Results The mean propulsive velocity significantly reduced between the first and last repetition of each series, with a similar reduction for men (-12.4 to -29.2%) and women (-29.2 to -35.6%). The same pattern was observed for the other kinetic and kinematic variables. The maximum voluntary contraction and peak force development rate also decreased for both men (-15.1 ± 8.7% and -26.9 ± 21.2%, respectively) and women (-13.9 ± 10.4% and -28.2 ± 11.5%, respectively). Conclusion Based on the different variables used to quantify the effect of fatigue during and after horizontal leg press exercises, the research found practically no differences between men and women. Level of evidence II; Comparative prospective study.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nilson Ribeiro dos Santos Silva ◽  
Matheus Pacheco ◽  
Rafael Akira Fujita ◽  
Marina Mello Villalba ◽  
MATHEUS MACHADO GOMES

Objective To elucidate the muscle recruitment patterns and interindividual variability during co-contraction training sessions for lower limbs. Methods Ten active male young adults underwent two days of tests, in which they performed, for each leg, a maximal isometric voluntary contraction protocol followed by a co-contraction training set. We acquired myoelectric (EMG) activity from the sartorius, biceps femoris long and short heads, semitendinosus, semimembranosus, rectus femoris, vastus lateralis and vastus medialis and tensor facia latae during both protocols. We used iterative HLM analyses and bootstrap ANOVAs to explain within and between participant variances. Results On average, participants started recruiting 36% of their maximum EMG amplitude, showing decays of 0.41% per repetition and increasing 7.45% from day 1 to day 2. Participants who started with higher recruitment showed greater decays over repetitions and vice-versa. The training stimulated similarly the ratio of participants’ flexors and extensors. However, participants demonstrated different average muscle recruitment patterns with some individuals modifying, largely, their recruitment over repetitions/days. Between and within-variability in recruitment pattern was maintained throughout repetitions and days. We found no consistent similarity in terms of pairs of participants as to find common types of recruitment. Conclusion Co-contraction training seems to be effective to recruit thigh muscles of both legs along an entire set of repetitions and days. Despite the accounted variations in intramuscular recruitment, co-contraction training evokes similar muscular in flexor’s and extensor’s recruitment among participants.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Dasom Oh ◽  
Wootaek Lim

BACKGROUND: Although the medial and lateral hamstrings are clearly distinct anatomically and have different functions in the transverse plane, they are often considered as one muscle during rehabilitation. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the study was to compare the electromyographic (EMG) activity between the prone position and the supine position during maximal isometric contraction and to additionally confirm the effect of submaximal isometric contractions on EMG activity of medial and lateral hamstrings, and force. METHODS: In the prone position, EMG activities of the long head of biceps femoris (BFLH) and semitendinosus (ST) were measured during the maximal isometric contraction. In the supine position, hip extension force with EMG activity were measured during the maximal and the submaximal isometric contractions. RESULTS: EMG activity in the prone position was significantly decreased in the supine position. In the supine position, there was a significant difference between the BFLH and ST during the maximal isometric contraction, but not during the submaximal isometric contractions. CONCLUSIONS: The dependence on the hamstrings could be relatively lower during hip extensions. When the medial and lateral hamstrings are considered separately, the lateral hamstrings may show a more active response, with increased muscle length, in clinical practice.


2012 ◽  
Vol 26 (10) ◽  
pp. 2685-2697 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian K. Leary ◽  
Jason Statler ◽  
Britton Hopkins ◽  
Rachael Fitzwater ◽  
Tucker Kesling ◽  
...  

2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 174-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonardo Henrique Perinotto Abdalla ◽  
Benedito Sérgio Denadai ◽  
Natália Menezes Bassan ◽  
Camila Coelho Greco

The objective of this study was to test the hypotheses that end-test torque (ET) (expressed as % maximal voluntary contraction; MVC) is higher for plantar flexors (PF) than knee extensors (KE) muscles, whereas impulse above ET (IET) is higher for KE than PF. Thus, we expected that exercise tolerance would be longer for KE than PF only during the exercise performed above ET. After the determination of MVC, 40 men performed two 5-min all-out tests to determine ET and IET. Eleven participants performed a further 4 intermittent isometric tests, to exhaustion, at ET + 5% and ET – 5%, and 1 test for KE at the exercise intensity (%MVC) corresponding to ET + 5% of PF. The IET (7243.2 ± 1942.9 vs. 3357.4 ± 1132.3 N·m·s) and ET (84.4 ± 24.8 vs. 73.9 ± 19.5 N·m) were significantly lower in PF compared with KE. The exercise tolerance was significantly longer for PF (300.7 ± 156.7 s) than KE (156.7 ± 104.3 s) at similar %MVC (∼60%), and significantly shorter for PF (300.7 ± 156.7 s) than KE (697.0 ± 243.7 s) at ET + 5% condition. However, no significant difference was observed for ET – 5% condition (KE = 1030.2 ± 495.4 s vs. PF = 1028.3 ± 514.4 s). Thus, the limit of tolerance during submaximal isometric contractions is influenced by absolute MVC only during exercise performed above ET, which seems to be explained by differences on both ET (expressed as %MVC) and IET values.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Toshiaki Soga ◽  
Taspol Keerasomboon ◽  
Kei Akiyama ◽  
Norikazu Hirose

Context: This study aimed to examine the differences in electromyographic (EMG) activity of the biceps femoris long head (BFlh) and semitendinosus (ST) muscles, break-point angle (BPA), and the angle at peak BFlh EMG activity between bilateral and unilateral Nordic hamstring exercise (NHE) on a sloped platform. Design: This study was designed as a case-control study. Methods: Fourteen men participated in the study. The participants initially performed maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) on the prone leg curl to normalize the peak hamstring EMG amplitude as the %MVIC. Then, participants were randomized to perform the following 3 variations of NHE: bilateral (N40) or unilateral (N40U) NHE with a platform angle of 40°, and unilateral NHE with a platform angle of 50° (N50U). The EMG activities of the BFlh and ST and the knee flexion angle during the NHE variations were recorded to calculate the EMG activity of the BFlh and ST in terms of the %MVIC, the angle at peak BFlh EMG, and BPA. Results: The BFlh %MVIC was significantly higher in N40U (P < .05) and N50U (P < .05) than in N40. A significant difference in BFlh %MVIC and ST %MVIC was observed between N40U (P < .05) and N50U (P < .05). The mean values of BPA and the angle at peak BFlh EMG were <30° for all NHE variations. Conclusions: In the late swing phase of high-speed running, BFlh showed higher EMG activity; thus, unilateral NHE may be a specific hamstring exercise for hamstring injury prevention.


Author(s):  
Courtney Middelcoop ◽  
Colten Fales ◽  
Richard T. Stone ◽  
Joseph Kim ◽  
Kristina Schaffhausen ◽  
...  

In studying the effects of expertise on different performance aspects of the gymnastic vault event, various springboard types with similar compression forces were evaluated between expert and novice-level gymnasts. Surface EMGs (sEMG) were placed on four major muscles (biceps femoris, rectus femoris, gastrocnemius medialis, and tibialis anterior) to find each gymnasts’ maximum voluntary contraction. Similarly, board compression and knee flexion angles were also captured at various phases of the performed vaults. Given that gymnasts with more expertise were more consistent in their landing spot on the various vault boards, they had more consistent performance outputs as a result. Expert gymnasts did this by more accurately hitting the sweet spot, more consistently activating their hamstring and gastrocnemius, and decreasing variability during the initial contact phase. By doing this, board compression and performance were both optimized. Coaches can use this information to accelerate the development of novice gymnasts by targeting these aspects.


1976 ◽  
Vol 20 (23) ◽  
pp. 548-551
Author(s):  
T. Fukunaga ◽  
K. Yuasa ◽  
M. Kobayashi ◽  
T. Miyagawa ◽  
H. Fujimatsu ◽  
...  

The aim of this study is to measure the integrated EMG in relation to the oxygen uptake during submaximal treadmill and bicycle exercises. Seven healthy adult subjects performed five minute exercise at three different submaximal work intensities on the same day. The EMG activity in right thigh and leg muscles was measured from m. rectus femoris, m. biceps femoris, m. tibialis anterior and m. gastrocnemius by means of four pairs of surface electrodes sealed with collodion to the skin at a distance of 3 cm apart over the belly of muscles. The EMG activity was not likely modified by the possible fatigue during 5 minutes submaximal exercise in this experiment. In the treadmill walking, there was a rectilinear relationship between integrated EMG activity from four muscle groups and percent of VO2max. On the bicycle exercise the correlation coefficient between them was generally lower than that on the treadmill walking. The product of integrated EMG and volume of the same muscle groups was considerably linearly related to oxygen uptake during treadmill and bicycle exercise (the correlation coefficient was 0.945, p < 0.001 in treadmill and 0.710, p < 0.001 in bicycle).


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