Kinetics in lumbosacral and lower-limb joints of sprinters during barbell hip thrust compared to deadlift and back squat

Abstract

Joint kinetic characteristics during the eccentric phase are important in resistance exercises because eccentric actions with elastic potential energy storage lead to the energy recoil with large joint moment and power generation during the subsequent concentric phase. Previous studies assessed the force production capacity in the barbell hip thrust; however, these were reported by the methodology using only surface electromyographic amplitudes recorded in the lower back and thigh muscles and did not focus on eccentric action. This study aimed to determine kinetic characteristics of lumbosacral, hip and knee joints of sprinters during the eccentric and concentric phases in a barbell hip thrust, compared to those of deadlift and back squat. Eleven well-trained male sprinters participated in this study. Each participant performed two full ranges of motion repetition using their previously determined six-repetition maximum loads. During strength exercises, reflective marker displacements attached to the body and a barbell were captured using 22 high-speed cameras, and ground reaction forces were captured using 4 force plates simultaneously. In the barbell hip thrust, as well as deadlift, the peak values of the lumbosacral and hip extension moments were generated almost immediately after the eccentric phase and were 24% and 42% larger than those in the back squat, respectively. In the knee joint, the largest was the peak extension moment in the back squat (155 ± 28 Nm), followed in order by that in the barbell hip thrust (66 ± 33 Nm) and that in the deadlift (24 ± 27 Nm). These demonstrated that a barbell hip thrust, as well as deadlift, can be a resistance exercise to strengthen the lower back and posterior thigh muscles. Thus, these resistance exercises may be able to be used separately according to their intended purposes, enabling transformations of strength training to specific dynamic motions such as sprint running.

The effects of stance width during barbell hip thrust on power and velocity output among adolescent Silat athletes

“…Muscle activity using Electromyography (EMG) and kinetic were frequently used to measure force production. For example, peak values during kinetic measurement were 24% and 42% more significant in barbell hip thrust and deadlift than in back squats during lumbosacral and hip extension movement on the force platform [22]. This study suggested that barbell hip thrust demonstrated more hip extension and lower back for strength training with a slightly focused knee extension movement.…”

Associations of eccentric force variables during jumping and eccentric lower-limb strength with vertical jump performance: A systematic review

“…Knee torque and power during the CMJ contribute to the jump height [ 33 ], which is reasonable, given the importance of knee strength for jumping performance. This was also the case for squatting, which was related to the greater torque exerted by the knee during this movement [ 34 ]. On the other hand, knee flexion muscle strength is not important because the knee action in jumping is extension.…”

Associations of maximum and reactive strength indicators with force–velocity profiles obtained from squat jump and countermovement jump

“…Movement characteristics of the HSQ exercise, CMJ, and SJ can explain this finding. Although CMJ is an exercise that uses slow SSC and HSQ, SJ does not use SSC [5,41,42]. This finding proposed that the HSQ exercise is more similar to CMJ than SJ in terms of SSC use.…”