EVALUATION OF SURFACE ELECTROMYOGRAPHY DURING THE PERFORMANCE OF FOUR DIFFERENT ABDOMINAL EXERCISES

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate muscle’s response to four different abdominal exercises by means of surface electromyography (sEMG). Six male volunteers (24 ± 4,47 yo) with at least 6 months experience in the performance of regular abdominal exercise participated in this study. sEMG data was collected by means of a 4 channel electromyography. Data was normalized by the mean of each channel and was analyzed using ANOVA and Sheffé Post Hoc test (p< 0.05). The results of this study showed that the two conventional abdominal exercises presented a higher sEMG signal in the supra, rather than in the infra umbilical area. During the infra and complete abdominal exercises, the stronger sEMG signals were observed in the external oblique and rectusfemoral muscles.