earticle

영어

Background: Improper hip muscle use can cause musculoskeletal disorders. Although side-lying hip abduction and clam shell exercises have been studied for gluteus activation and tensor fasciae latae inhibition, research on the effects of the hydrant exercises remains lacking. This study compares hip muscle activation among the three exercises. Methods: Eighteen men aged 20~30 years performed side-lying hip abduction, clam shell, and hydrant exercises. The activation of gluteus maximus, medius, and tensor fasciae latae was measured. A one-way repeated measures ANOVA with the Bonferroni post-hoc test was conducted at α=.05. Results: Gluteus maximus activation was comparable across exercises (p>.05). Compared with the other exercises, side-lying hip abduction resulted in significantly higher gluteus medius and tensor fasciae latae activation and significantly lower gluteus maximus/tensor fasciae latae and gluteus medius/tensor fasciae latae activation ratios (p<.05). Conclusion: Side-lying hip abduction activates the gluteus medius and tensor fasciae latae, whereas clam shell and hydrant exercises reduce tensor fasciae latae activation and increase gluteus maximus and medius activation. Thus, clam shell and hydrant exercises are more suitable as gluteal exercises than side-lying hip abduction.