Muscle Activation During Squat on Different Surfaces

This study aimed to compare the vastus medialis and vastus lateralis muscle activations during squat exercises performed on different surfaces. Recreationally active 14 males (age: 20.43±1.28 years; height: 176.94±6.58 cm; body weight: 72.78±10.72 kg) participated in this study. A ground surface is used as a stable surface, a gymnastics mat and a Bosu ball are used as an unstable surface. Participants performed two sets of squats on three surfaces and ten repetitions of each set. Participants performed squat exercises with their body weight. Muscle activation measurements were made from the vastus medialis and vastus lateralis muscles during the squat movement on each surface. A one-way repeated-measures analysis of variances was used to statistically compare muscle activations between surfaces. As a result of statistical analysis, no significant differences were found in the vastus medialis and vastus lateralis muscle activations between surfaces (p>0.05). In conclusion, it was determined that the vastus medialis and vastus lateralis muscle activation in the squat movement was not affected by the stability of the surfaces. Therefore, it can be suggested that the surfaces used in this study can be used interchangeably for vastus medialis (VM) and vastus lateralis (VL) muscle activation in the squat exercise.