Hamstring and Glute Muscle Activation During 6 Exercises in Trained Women
A look at common hip extension and knee flexion exercises.
This study investigates muscle activation patterns in the biceps femoris (BF) and gluteus maximus (GMax) during six lower body exercises in trained women.
PMID: 35989703
The biceps femoris, a double-jointed muscle that performs both hip extension and knee flexion, is challenging to train effectively. Imbalances between posterior and anterior chain muscles can increase the risk of lower-extremity injury. This study aims to compare muscle activation in different regions of the BF and GMax during common resistance training exercises.
Methods
Participants: 15 resistance-trained females (age 20.8±1.1 years, height 167.5±4.9 cm, mass 64.2±8.1 kg)
Exercises: Romanian deadlift (RDL), step-up, hip extension, cable kickbacks, Nordic hamstring curls (Noridcs), and leg curls
Measurements: Surface electromyography (EMG) on proximal, medial, and distal BF, and GMax
Protocol:
Day 1: 6 repetitions to failure for each exercise to estimate 1RM
Day 2: 3 repetitions at 75% estimated 1RM with EMG recording
Results
BF proximal (BFprox):
Higher activation in kickbacks, Nordics, and leg curls compared to RDL, step-up, and hip extension
BF medial (BFmed):
Greater activation in hip extension, kickbacks, Nordics, and leg curls vs. step-up and RDL
BF distal (BFdist):
Higher activation during kickbacks, Nordics, and leg curls vs. RDL, step-up, and hip extension
Gluteus Maximus (GMax):
The kickback, step-up and hip extension exercises all had the highest glute max activation, followed by the RDL
The lowest activation for the glute max was during leg curls compared to other exercises
Nordic exercises consistently elicited the highest voltage among all six exercises
