Electromyographic Comparison of Traditional and Suspension Push-Ups

Abstract

There is very limited scientific data concerning suspension training. The purpose of this investigation was to compare the electromyographic activity of the pectoralis major, anterior deltoid, and triceps brachii between a suspension push-up and traditional push-up. Twenty-one apparently healthy men (n = 15, age = 25.93 ± 3.67 years) and women (n = 6, age = 23.5 ± 1.97 years) volunteered to participate in this study. All subjects performed four repetitions of a suspension push-up and a traditional push-up where the order of the exercises was randomized. The mean peak and normalized electromyography of the pectoralis major, anterior deltoid, and triceps brachii were compared across the two exercises. Suspension push-ups elicited the following electromyographic values: pectoralis major (3.08 ± 1.13 mV, 69.54 ± 27.6 %MVC), anterior deltoid (5.08 ± 1.55 mV, 81.13 ± 17.77 %MVC), and triceps brachii (5.11 ± 1.97 mV, 105.83 ± 18.54 %MVC). The electromyographic activities during the traditional push-up were as follows: pectoralis major (2.66 ± 1.05 mV, 63.62 ± 16.4 %MVC), anterior deltoid (4.01 ± 1.27 mV, 58.91 ± 20.3 %MVC), and triceps brachii (3.91 ± 1.36 mV, 74.32 ± 16.9 %MVC). The mean peak and normalized electromyographic values were significantly higher for all 3 muscles during the suspension push-up compared to the traditional push-up (p < 0.05). This study suggests that the suspension push-up elicited a greater activation of pectoralis major, anterior deltoid, and triceps brachii when compared to a traditional push-up. Therefore, suspension push-ups may be considered an advanced variation of a traditional push-up when a greater challenge is warranted.

Shoulder muscle activation during stable and suspended push-ups at different heights in healthy subjects

“…While recent push-ups studies were mainly conducted to compare the muscle activity during a stable condition and the same exercise performed on unstable devices such as on a Swiss ball (Lehman, MacMillan, MacIntyre, Chivers, & Fluter, 2006) or on two basketball balls (Freeman, Karpowicz, Gray, & McGill, 2006), suspended push-ups remain poorly investigated. In fact, to the best of our knowledge, there are only a few recent papers focused on suspended push-ups performed with standard technique (Beach, Howarth, & Callaghan, 2008;Snarr & Esco, 2013), moreover, information regarding muscle activation performing suspended/stable push-ups at two different heights has not been enough reported previously and neither this topic together with the comparison between stabilizer and mobilizer muscles of the shoulder. Thus, our purpose was to determine the muscle activation on some mobilizer and stabilizer muscles of the shoulder associated with this type of suspension device during push-up compared with a stable push-up at two different heights (i.e.…”

Core Muscle Activation in Suspension Training Exercises

“…Although considerable research has examined more traditional means of instability training (Behm and Drinkwater, 2010), little previous research has evaluated the effects of suspension training on muscle activation. In particular, some studies focused on core-directed exercises (Atkins, 2014; Byrne et al, 2014; Czaprowski et al, 2014; Mok et al, 2014; Snarr and Esco, 2014), whereas others investigated the effect of the application of suspension system on core muscle activity in push exercises (Calatayud et al, 2014; McGill et al, 2014; Snarr and Esco, 2013). Further investigation of these exercise approaches is needed to understand their influence on muscle activation and joint load levels.…”

Twelve-week sensorimotor training as a factor influencing movement patterns of canoe slalom athletes, assessed by the Functional Movement Screen

“…Asymptotic significance (two-sided) p = 0.0005 p = 0.083 p = 0.025 p = 0.0008 p = 0.008 p = 0.025 p = 0.083 p = 0.0003 of the deltoid muscle and the serratus anterior muscle [4]. In electromyography (EMG) tests, Snarr and Esco found increased activity of the pectoralis major muscle, triceps brachii muscle and the anterior head of the deltoid muscle when push-ups were performed in unstable conditions [27].…”