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Related Concept Videos

Motor Unit Stimulation01:20

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When the neuron of a motor unit fires an action potential, it triggers a series of events, leading to a twitch contraction in the muscle fibers. The process of excitation-contraction coupling is crucial in relaying the action potential to the muscle fibers.
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The contraction strength of muscles is regulated by motor neurons, which modulate the frequency of action potentials dispatched to the motor units based on the body's requirements. This process of varying the muscle stimulation frequency allows muscles to contract with a force that is precisely tailored to the needs of the moment, whether lifting a feather or a heavy box.
Wave summation
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Excitation-contraction coupling is a series of events that occur between generating an action potential and initiating a muscle contraction. It occurs at the triad, a structure found in skeletal muscle fibers that comprise a T-tubule and terminal cisternae of the sarcoplasmic reticulum on each side. These triads are visible in longitudinally sectioned muscle fibers. They are typically located at the A-I junction — the junction between the A and I bands of the sarcomere.
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The Quantification of Muscle Activation During the Loaded Carry Movement Pattern.

Samuel H Ellestad1, Thomas P Holcomb2, Alexis M Swiergol2

  • 1Army-Baylor DPT Program, Baylor University, San Antonio, TX, USA.

International Journal of Exercise Science
|April 26, 2024
PubMed
Summary

Loaded carries, like the farmer's carry (FC) and suitcase carry (SC), activate more core muscles than static holds. The SC uniquely enhances ipsilateral muscle activation during loaded carries.

Keywords:
Plankfarmers carryfarmers holdsuitcase carrysuitcase hold

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Area of Science:

  • Biomechanics and Exercise Physiology
  • Human Movement Science
  • Sports Medicine

Background:

  • Loaded carry exercises engage core musculature during locomotion.
  • Carry and hold exercises exist in bilateral (farmer's) and unilateral (suitcase) variations.
  • Understanding muscle activation differences can optimize exercise selection.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare core muscle activation between loaded carry (farmer's carry, suitcase carry) and hold exercises (farmer's hold, suitcase hold).
  • To investigate bilateral and unilateral activation patterns in key core muscles.
  • To inform the application of these exercises in training programs.

Main Methods:

  • Surface electromyography measured rectus abdominis (RA), external oblique (EO), longissimus (LT), and multifidus (MF) activation.
  • Healthy, college-aged participants performed randomized, intensity-matched planks, farmer's carries (FC), suitcase carries (SC), farmer's holds (FH), and suitcase holds (SH).
  • One-way ANOVA analyzed differences in muscle activation between exercises.

Main Results:

  • Farmer's carry (FC) showed higher bilateral activation in LT, MF, RA, and EO compared to farmer's hold (FH).
  • Suitcase carry (SC) demonstrated greater bilateral LT and MF activation than suitcase hold (SH).
  • SC led to significantly higher ipsilateral RA and EO activation compared to SH, with no contralateral difference.

Conclusions:

  • Loaded carries (FC and SC) generally promote greater bilateral core muscle activation than their hold counterparts.
  • The suitcase carry (SC) provides unique benefits by increasing ipsilateral core muscle activation.
  • These findings support the use of loaded carries for comprehensive core engagement.