Individual differences in the distribution of activation among the hamstring muscle heads during stiff-leg Deadlift and Nordic hamstring exercises

The aim of this study was to compare the distribution of activation among the three heads of the hamstring between a knee flexion-oriented exercise (Nordic hamstring) and a hip extension-oriented exercise (stiff-leg Deadlift) at the group and individual level. Data were collected for 20 participants. Muscle activation of the semimembranosus (SM), semitendinosus (ST), and biceps femoris (BF) was estimated using surface electromyography (EMG) during Nordic hamstring and stiff-leg Deadlift exercises. Although Nordic hamstring exercise induced a higher normalized RMS EMG value for BF (64.5 ± 17.4%) compared to SM (48.6 ± 14.6%; P$$0.001) and ST (55.9 ± 17.4%; P < 0.001), the greatest active muscle varied between individuals. Similar interindividual differences in the greatest active muscle were found for the stiff-leg Deadlift exercise. Regarding the distribution of activation, the stiff-leg Deadlift favoured the contribution of the SM compared to ST (P < 0.001, 18/20 participants) whereas the Nordic hamstring exercise favoured the contribution of the ST compared to SM (P < 0.001, 19/20 participants). Importantly, these tasks affected the contribution of the activation of BF in different ways between individuals. The distribution of activation across the three muscles was well correlated between the two exercises (r values $$ 0.42).