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Background and Purpose. Performing nontraditional abdominal exercises with devices such as abdominal straps, the Power Wheel, and the Ab Revolutionizer has been suggested as a way to activate abdominal and extraneous (nonabdominal) musculature as effectively as more traditional abdominal exercises, such as the chinch and bent-knee sit-up. The purpose of this study was to test the effectiveness of traditional and nontraditional abdominal exercises in activating abdominal and extraneous musculature. Subjects. Twenty-one men and women who were healthy and between 23 and 43 years of age were recruited for this study. Methods. Surface electromyography (EMG) was used to assess muscle activity from the upper and lower rectus abdominis, external and internal oblique, rectus femoris, latissimus dorsi, and lumbar paraspinal muscles while each exercise was performed. The EMG data were normalized to maximum voluntary muscle contractions. Differences in muscle activity were assessed by a 1-way, repeated-measures analysis of variance. Results. Upper and lower rectus abdominis, internal oblique, and latissimus dorsi muscle EMG activity were highest for the Power Wheel (pike, knee-up, and roll-out), hanging knee-up with straps, and reverse crunch inclined 30 degrees. External oblique muscle EMG activity was highest for the Power Wheel (pike, knee-up, and roll-out) and hanging knee-up with straps. Rectus femoris muscle EMG activity was highest for the Power Wheel (pike and knee-up), reverse crunch inclined 30 degrees, and bent-knee sit-up. Lumbar paraspinal muscle EMG activity was low and similar among exercises. Discussion and Conclusion. The Power Wheel (pike, knee-up, and roll-out), hanging knee-up with straps, and reverse crunch inclined 30 degrees not only were the most effective exercises in activating abdominal musculature but also were the most effective in activating extraneous musculature. The relatively high rectus femoris muscle activity obtained with the Power Wheel (pike and knee-up), reverse crunch inclined 30 degrees, and bent-knee sit-up may be problematic for some people with low back problems. [Escamilla RF, Babb E, DeWitt R, et al. Electromyographic analysis of traditional and nontraditional abdominal exercises: implications for rehabilitation and training. Phys Ther. 2006;86:656-671.] Key Words: Back pain, Crunch, Electromyography, Lumbar spine, Normalization, Oblique musculature, Rectus muscle, Sit-up., Understanding how different abdominal exercises elicit muscle activity is useful to therapists and other health care or fitness specialists who develop specific abdominal exercises for their patients or clients to [...]

The study compares cruciate ligament forces between the forward lunge with a short step and the forward lunge with a long step. Evidence indicates all lunge variations are appropriate and safe during anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rehabilitation because of minimal ACL loading.

Understanding the patellofemoral force and stress magnitudes can help clinicians prescribe therapeutic exercises to people with patellofemoral pain syndrome. Wall squat exercises between 60 and 90 degrees knee angles generally produce greater patellofemoral forces so smaller knee angles lower than 50 degrees is prudent.

Anterior and posterior cruciate ligament forces during the wall squat and one-leg squat exercises are compared. Posterior cruciate ligament forces were similar in the two squat exercises, while anterior cruciate ligament forces were generated only in the one leg squat.