ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to investigate leg muscle activity during fin-swimming (two-legged) using kinesiological electromyography (EMG) techniques. Six differently shaped commercial flippers were tested by nine male recreational divers during a 15 m maximal leg propulsion swim at a depth of 1.5 m. For all muscles investigated results showed a cyclic activation pattern, as could be expected from prior front crawl swimming studies. Averaged integrated EMG (iEMG) of M. rectus femoris was significantly higher when compared to the M. biceps femoris, as was the case for the M. gastrocnemius in comparison to the M. tibialis anterior. No significant differences in iEMG of the muscles investigated were found when the different types of flippers were taken into consideration. Because of its significant performance improvement, without any alteration in EMG activity, it was concluded that the Nordic fin can be preferred over the other fins tested.
