Differences in Activation Patterns of the Hamstring Muscles During Sprinting

Abstract

In this chapter, we evaluate the functional characteristics of the hamstring muscles during sprinting. During near maximal sprinting speed, the respective hamstring muscles exhibited very different characteristics of electromyographic (EMG) activation within the sprinting gait cycle. The activation demand of the BFlh muscles is high before and after foot contact due to their function as hip extensors, while the ST muscle shows high activation primarily during the control of knee extension and hip fl exion in the mid-swing phase. The mechanism underlying these activation characteristics may involve architectural differences between the hamstring muscles, which likely refl ect each muscle's function during sprinting. A complex neuromuscular coordination pattern of the hamstring muscles during sprinting is accomplished by the utilisation and activation of each muscle's specifi c functional differences.

Sports Injuries and Prevention

“…Considering the relations between the anatomical features of the proximal hamstrings and injury location, differences in the activation patterns between the BFlh and ST muscles, which were found in our previous studies (Higashihara et al 2010 ;Higashihara et al 2013 ), might have signifi cant effects on the mechanism of hamstring strain. These results can be explained anatomically by the fact that in the proximal hamstring, the BFlh and ST muscles have a combined tendon origin and proximal part of their muscle .…”

“…Activation of the BFlh muscle is greater during the early-stance and late-swing phases than during the late-stance and mid-swing phases, whereas the activity of the (Higashihara et al 2013 ). In addition, peak activation of the BFlh muscle occurrs signifi cantly closer to the point of foot contact compared to that of the ST muscle (Fig.…”

“…The hamstring muscles activate from mid-swing until the terminal stance of sprinting (Chumanov et al 2011 ;Higashihara et al 2010 ;Jonhagen et al 1996 ;Kyrolainen et al 1999Kyrolainen et al , 2005Simonsen et al 1985 ;Yu et al 2008 ), with peaks of activation during the terminal swing and early stance phases (Chumanov et al 2011 ;Higashihara et al 2010Higashihara et al , 2013Yu et al 2008 ) (Fig. 25.1b ).…”

“…In a recent study we investigated the activation patterns of the lateral and medial hamstring muscles durning overground sprinting (Higashihara et al 2013 ). The EMG activation of the ST muscle during the mid-swing phase was greater than that of the BFlh muscle ( Fig.…”

“…The hamstring muscles function as hip extensors that concentrically act to quickly swing the thigh back during the late-swing phase , and to provide the activation necessary for the generation of a forward propulsive force during the stance phase (Simonsen et al 1985 ). The activity of the semitendinosus ( ST ) muscle was signifi cantly greater than that of the BFlh muscle during the late-stance and mid-swing phases: **, p < 0.01; ***, p < 0.001; †, p < 0.05; † †, p < 0.01 vs. BFlh (Modifi ed image from Conference Proceedings (Higashihara et al 2013 )) Fig. Therefore, during these phases of sprinting, the hamstring muscles primarily act as strong hip extensors (Novacheck 1998 ).…”