Changes in muscle coordination patterns during 400‐m sprint: Impact of fatigue and performance decline

Abstract

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to compare the muscle synergies extracted from 14 unilateral lower‐limb and trunk muscles between the first and final parts of a 400‐m sprint in experienced sprinters to understand neuromuscular coordination of multiple muscles in the fatigued condition sprint. Nine male 400‐m sprinters (400‐m personal record: 48.11 ± 1.6 s) performed 400‐m sprints as with the real competition strategy. We defined the first part (100–150 m section) and the final part (350–400 m section), and obtained mean spatiotemporal variables (e.g., running speed, step frequency, and step length) for both parts. Electromyography (EMG) signals were obtained using wireless EMG sensors (2000 Hz) from 14 lower‐limb and trunk muscles. Non‐negative matrix factorization was performed to extract the muscle synergies for both parts. We observed significantly declined spatiotemporal variables in the final part induced by fatigue. The extracted number of synergies was 7.0 ± 0.7 (mean ± SD) for the first part and 7.2 ± 0.4 for the final part with no significant differences between parts. However, we identified specific muscle synergy, and alterations in the individual muscle weightings of several hip muscles (rectus femoris: RF, tensor fasciae latae: TFL, and glutes maximus: Gmax muscles) while there was no change in the muscle weighting of shank muscles and the temporal patterns of all muscles even following fatigue in the 400‐m sprint. Fatigue‐induced performance decline in a 400‐m sprint corresponds to alterations in muscle synergies, particularly in hip muscles, with notable shifts in RF, TFL, and Gmax activation.