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
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
Recommended Citation
Sanchez, Ricardo, "The relationship between gluteus maximus activation and running kinematics in recreational distance runners" (2023). Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects. 640.
https://digitalcommons.humboldt.edu/etd/640