Interaction of breathing pattern and posture on abdominal muscle activation and intra-abdominal pressure in healthy individuals: a comparative cross-sectional study

Abstract

We aimed to assess the effects of interaction between several breathing patterns and postures on abdominal muscle activation and intra-abdominal pressure (IAP). This comparative cross-sectional study enrolled fourteen healthy university students majoring in sports science and/or physical education. They performed four active breathing tasks: quiet nasal breathing (Q-Bre), nasal deep breathing (Deep-Bre), completely forced expiration (Forced-Expi), and exertional nasal inhalation with abdominal muscles with isometric contraction (Exertion-Inspi) in the elbow-toe plank and supine postures. Breathing volume; IAP; and transverse abdominis-internal oblique muscle (TrA-IO) and external oblique muscle (EO) activities were recorded. Abdominal muscle activity and IAP significantly interacted with breathing pattern and postures during the expiratory phase (p < 0.05). In the inspiratory phase, TrA-IO activity was significantly affected by breathing pattern and EO activity with posture (p < 0.05). TrA-IO activity significantly increased during Forced-Expi in the supine posture (47.6% of the maximum voluntary contraction) and Exertion-Inspi in the elbow-toe posture (35.7%), whereas no differences were found during Deep-Bre or Q-Bre (< 20%). EO activity increased in the elbow-toe posture (22.5–30.6%) compared with that in the supine posture (< 5%) during all breathing tasks. IAP values were low during all tasks (< 15%) except for Forced-Expi (24.9%). Abdominal muscle activation and IAP interacted with the breathing pattern and posture.

Nuances of the Valsalva manoeuvre and bracing with regard to resistance training performance and its effects on the pelvic floor

“…The magnitude of IAP escalation and the subsequent haemodynamic response are very variable. The length of time during which individuals hold their breath differs based on the form of exercise, the number of sets and repetitions, the load, and experience (Kawabata et al 2010;Kawabata & Shima 2023). More-experienced lifters generate a larger change in IAP, and therefore, a greater haemodynamic response than their untrained counterparts (Kawabata et al 2010;Drury & Green 2023).…”