Context: Hip-adductor strains are among the most common lower-extremity injuries sustained in athletics. Treatment of these injuries involves a variety of exercises used to target the hip adductors.
Objective: To identify the varying activation levels of the adductor longus during common hip-adductor exercises.
Design: Descriptive study.
Setting: Laboratory.
Participants: 24 physically active, college-age students.
Intervention: None.
Main measurement outcomes: Peak and average electromyographic (EMG) activity of the adductor longus muscle during the following 6 hip-adductor rehabilitation exercises: side-lying hip adduction, ball squeezes, rotational squats, sumo squats, standing hip adduction on a Swiss ball, and side lunges.
Results: The side-lying hip-adduction exercise produced more peak and average activation than any other exercise (P < .001). Ball squeezes produced more peak and average activation than rotational squats, sumo squats, and standing adduction on a Swiss ball (P < .001). Ball squeezes had more average activation than side lunges (P = .001). All other variables for peak activation during the exercises were not statistically significant (P > .08). These results allowed the authors to provide an overall ranking system (highest to lowest muscle activation): side-lying hip adduction, ball squeezes, side lunges, standing adduction on a Swiss ball, rotational squats, and sumo squats.
Conclusion: The study provides a ranking system on the activation levels of the adductor longus muscle for 6 common hip-adductor rehabilitation exercises, with the side-lying hip-adduction and ball-squeeze exercises displaying the highest overall activation.