Lower leg muscle activation during the ebbets foot drills

Abstract

Lateral ankle sprains (LAS) often lead to chronic ankle instability (CAI). The Ebbets foot drills were created to strengthen the lower leg muscles and reduce the risk of LAS. The current study aimed to explore the activation of the lower leg muscles during the Ebbets foot drills. Twenty-two (22) college students without LAS participated in the study. Surface electromyography (sEMG) of the tibialis anterior (TA), tibialis posterior (TP), and peroneus longus (PL) was collected during each of the Ebbets foot drills and a normal walking trial. The sEMG mean root mean square (RMS) was calculated for each walking and Ebbets foot drill trial duration. The mean RMS was higher during the Ebbets foot drills compared to normal walking for all muscles. The TA sEMG mean RMS was greater (4.0–68.3%, P = 0.001–0.023) during all the Ebbets foot drills than during the walking trial. The TP had greater mean RMS during the toe-in (50.4%, P < 0.001), toe-out (55.0%, P < 0.001), and backward walking (47.3%, P < 0.001) drills, than during the walking trial. The PL had greater mean RMS during all Ebbets foot drills (19.4–53.7%, P < 0.001) except for the heel walking and inversion drills. Ebbets foot drills higher muscle activity than regular walking, suggesting that the Ebbets foot drills could aid in the strengthening of the TA, TP, and PL muscles. These results build evidence on Ebbets’ theory and indicate that these drills may be used to rehabilitate LAS and CAI.