Attentional Focusing Strategies Influence Muscle Activity During Isokinetic Biceps Curls

The present study assessed the influence of different attentional focusing instructions upon muscular activity during biceps curl movements. Twenty-nine participants carried out 10 biceps curl repetitions on an isokinetic dynamometer at 60oás-1 using control, internal (focusing upon arm movements) and external (focusing upon movement of the bar) attentional focusing strategies whilst Electromyography (EMG) activity of the biceps brachii was recorded. Significantly higher levels of EMG activity were observed in the internal and control conditions when compared to when an external strategy was used. When data was normalised against the control condition, the internal strategy resulted in significantly higher levels of EMG activity when compared to the external strategy. Attentional focusing strategies and instructions influence the observed muscular activity, which has direct implications for both skill execution and physical training settings. Coaches, trainers, and physiotherapists should be aware of the effects that different instructional emphases can have at a muscular level.