Graduation Date

Spring 2023

Document Type

Thesis

Program

Master of Science degree with a major in Kinesiology, option Exercise Science

Committee Chair Name

Dr. Justus Ortega

Committee Chair Affiliation

HSU Faculty or Staff

Second Committee Member Name

Dr. Tina Manos

Second Committee Member Affiliation

HSU Faculty or Staff

Third Committee Member Name

Dr. Eli Lankford

Third Committee Member Affiliation

HSU Faculty or Staff

Keywords

Biomechanics, Running, Muscle activation

Subject Categories

Kinesiology

Abstract

Within the running community, there are strategies that a trainer will utilize to improve the performance of an athlete. One of these strategies suggests that an increase in activation of the Gluteus Maximus (GM) muscle will result in an increase in the efficiency of runners. The primary purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between GM activation and running kinematics.

Methods: Three female and seven male recreational runners (27±8 yrs) from California Polytechnic State University, Humboldt and the local community. A Pearson product-correlation was used to determine the strength of the relationship between Gluteus Maximus activation and kinematic variables at 11km/hr. For each trial, muscle activation (2000 Hz; Delsys Trigno) of the Rectus Femoris (RF), Biceps Femoris (BF), Soleus (SOL), Tibialis Anterior (TA) muscles and leg kinematics (200 Hz; Vicon Nexus) were collected in the last two minutes of each six-minute trial.

Results/Discussion: When examining the relationship between muscle activation and kinematic variables, no lower extremity muscles examined were correlated with peak joint angles and spatio-temporal kinematics. This lack of a relationship between muscle activation and running kinematics may be related to the Spring-Mass mechanics of running in which elastic energy is stored and released in the muscle-tendon units, thus reducing the amount of work performed by the muscles.

Conclusion: GM activation does not correlate with running kinematic variables at intermediate running speeds. The results of this study will be beneficial to coaches and athletes in developing a training program to improve running performance.

Citation Style

APA

Included in

Biomechanics Commons

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