Name: Tibialis Anterior Activation and Progressions
Uploaded: 2023-04-26T01:00:39.000Z
Duration: 9 min 33 s

English captions

https://stream.mux.com/7aySof5eq3p32v5OFg9Fu8RoDXVC5RHmpDXPL009opGY.m3u8

Learn how to properly perform tibialis anterior and tibial internal rotator activation exercises in this comprehensive step-by-step instructional video from the Brookbush Institute. This evidence-based video provides expert coaching on setup, positioning, alignment, and technique (including progressions and regressions). Safely enhance tibialis anterior activation, improve dorsiflexion strength and tibial control, and support optimal lower-extremity alignment and movement mechanics. Suitable for all fitness levels. Perfect for athletes, fitness enthusiasts, and rehabilitation clients seeking to reduce pain, improve performance, and restore optimal movement mechanics while reducing injury risk.

Introduction to Tibialis Anterior Activation Exercise

Setting Up the Exercise

Understanding Dorsiflexion and Inhibition of Synergists

Correct Technique and Tempo for Activation

Progression and Reinforcement of Muscle Activation

Increasing Resistance and Enhancing Functionality

Practical Application and Optimizing Exercise Setup

Tibialis Anterior Activation and Progressions

This is Brent of the Brookbush Institute, and in this video I am going to show you my favorite tibialis anterior activation exercise. I am going to have my friend Melissa come out, she's going to help me demonstrate this exercise. You will see how easy the set up is on this one. We're going to use one of these monster bands which I think you know as pull-up assist bands. I tend to use the serious steel bands, I like them they are good high quality bands. We're going to just go ahead and slipknot around the bottom leg of the table here; and then I just need to flop this over the top of her foot just like so. Now, notice I have this at the base of her foot and not at the top of her foot. I understand that the top of her foot would create a larger lever, and make for more resistance but you have to think about your tarsal joints which can be a little sensitive, especially to this type of pressure. We don't want to create dysfunction trying to fix dysfunction. Now if you didn't have a treatment table then technique is totally the same. What you would do is you would hook a band to a heavy piece of equipment at the floor level. The only thing you will probably have to do is probably elevate the hele on something like a foam roll. Because if you don't have just a little bit of a downward angle on this band, it tends to flop off the foot every time you go into this plantarflexed relaxed state of this exercise. Now lets talk about activation exercise in general, we need figure out what joint actions this muscle does. And then figure out how to reciprocally inhibit those muscles that become synergistically dominant when this muscle becomes inhibited. So we have the tibialis anterior does inversion and dorsiflexion, that's pretty easy to do. That's going to be foot up and in, and in this case we are going to focus more on dorsiflexion than inversion. If we focus too much on inversion, we tend to not be able to dorsiflex as well, and since we tend to lose dorsiflexion I want to really focus on dorsiflexion and try to get it back. Now the overactive synergists for the tibialis anterior are the long toe extensors, especially that extensor digitorum longus which also everts and pronates the foot. So that muscle tends to want to contribute to our pes-planus or functional flat footedness, which you know as feet flat on the overhead squat assessment. The way we are going to get our long toe extensors out of the movement is toe flexion. SO we are just going to be kind of clever, we're going to use their joint actions at the toes to inhibit what we're going to do at the ankle. Now the tricky part is getting Melissa to go foot up and in while her toes go down. Its kind of the equivalent of this movement with the foot right, so you're going to pull up and in and toes down, and she's practiced this a little bit so this isn't too bad for her. And then she can just relax everything as she goes down, she doesn't have to keep her toes curled as she goes down. So foot up and in, toes down, and then she can relax it. Now, tempo markings for activation exercise are either 4-2-2 concentrating on the eccentric, or 2-4-2 concentrating on end range. Again since dorsiflexion is something we tend to lose and tibailis anterior activation will help me keep it, I tend to use that 2-4-2 count on the second exercise and really make people focus at the top. I want you to try to get as much dorsiflexion as you possibly can, right, get it, alright. Because if I have just done a lot of mobility work with her, right I want good carryover. I want her to keep that dorsiflexion for a long time, so hopefully we keep making progress over time. Good pull up and in. Good pull up and in, good. Now the other thing I really like about this exercise is there is this really clever progression. This clever progression is being able to integrate a lot of commonly active muscles in my lower extremity, reinforcing my heel strike mechanic during gait. So that moment where my heel strikes the floor and I need my tibialis anterior to eccentrically decelerate foot flat. I can kind of reinforce that during this which may improve my carry over more, and the way I am going to do that is I am actually going to have Melissa go down on her elbows. She's in a little too much hip flexion here for me to get the glutes involved. I will start with going, okay foot up and in, I want you to lead with this big toe knuckle here, right. And you are curling your toes so this really becomes prominent, lets get up as high as we can, and now I want you to try to squeeze your quad. And you will find a lot of people with have a hard time with this because before when they were dorsiflexing, they were trying to do this, right they were trying to pull their whole leg up. And what we want is lock your knee, pull up like this, good. You will also find that this makes it a little easier to con them into holding that isometric at the top, but we are not done yet. We are going to give her a couple of reps of foot up and in, toes curled, squeeze your quad, make sure we reinforce that a couple of times. Alright foot up and in, toes curled, squeeze your quad. Good hopefully you are starting to get that chain together in your head, foot up and In toes curled, flex my quad. Now what are we going to do? Squeeze the glute. So foot up and in, toes curled, squeeze your quad, squeeze your and squeeze your glute like you are trying to smash my palm right; and what you can do is throw a rolled up towel underneath your heel, give them something tactile to squish. Be careful, if you know somebody that has some hypermobility in their knee, they tend to do that rock at the bottom where they get that hyperextension, you can throw a towel under the knee so that they can squeeze their knee against that towel and not get into hyperextension. But back to our tactile cueing for this, foot up and in, toes down, squeeze, squeeze, hold. Good, you think you got 15 more? Trying to get somebody to do 20 of these, especially if they are one of these individuals who really compensates, you know knees bow in, feet turn out, feet flatten and excessive forward lean and they are so use to that compensatory pattern, this is something they have to work at. Which is good, because if they keep working at this, I have to tell you guys, this exercise have given me better carryover than any other tibialis anterior activation exercise I have ever done before, which is why it I my favorite. Because I know it makes big changes in my goniometry and I know when they come in for their next session my carryover is generally better. For the most part I don't find too much difficult for people doing this as their home exercise, but we did make another video just incase you don't have somewhere to tie one of these super heavy bands to. A tibialis anterior activation that uses no equipment, so make sure you look up that video as well. You might wonder how I progress this exercise. Well we can't really get more complicated or less stable in this position to continue progressing in that way, however we can progress in resistance and I do recommend it. Serious steel makes these larger blue and green bands, and I think everybody should get to green, I do. At the very least blue. The only reason I would let somebody get away with blue is if they were a smaller human being. Melissa I would expect to get to green. There are heavier bands than this, but that might be going too far. But think about what your tibialis anterior has to do. Every time you heel strike, especially when speeds get higher, when you are running, when you are jumping, your heel hits and your tibailis anterior is essentially the only muscle to slow your foot from just slapping into the ground. It is your primary decelerator of plantarflexion. We have a lot of people who come in and complain about shin splints, we have a lot of people who complain about these lower extremity injuries. A lot of them have this combination of they don't have enough dorsiflexion, and part of the reason they don't have enough dorsiflexion is because every time they try to get dorsiflexion with a calf stretch, or an ankle mobilisation, or calf release, or all three if we're lucky, is because they don't do the other side of it which I strengthen their dorsiflexor so that they maintain that dorsiflexion. They use that dorsiflexion during their daily activities. Give this exercise a try, set up a few stations in your gym. I can tell you that when I am treating I just leave a few of these bands tied around the legs of my table so that I can just flop them up. I can get in and out of this really quick, and I can even add like internal rotator activation if I want, and maybe go right into my glute activation, its all right there set up. You can just have some bands hooked around your power racks or your cable columns so that people can be getting this in, in their warm-ups. If you have any questions or comments please leave them in the box below. I hope you have enjoyed this video.

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Resistance Band Seated Tibialis Anterior Activation:

Have your client or patient start in a “long sit” position (sitting on a floor or table with legs straight out, supporting the torso with a backrest, out-stretched arm, or down on elbows).

Make a "slip knot" by running the resistance band through a handle creating a loop, and place the loop over the foot to be activated, closer to the ankle. Note: Do not simply slip your client's or patient's foot through the handle of the resistance band. This may result in the band slipping off during the exercise and potentially striking your patient/client in the face.

Run the band around the bottom of the foot of the contralateral leg; this leg and foot will be the pulley and will allow your client or patient to create a proximal to distal direction of force.

Ask your client or patient to hold the end of the band not attached to the foot tightly with both hands.

Have your client or patient dorsiflex their ankle and flex the hip and knee of the ipsilateral leg until sufficient resistance has been reached, and have your patient/client "hug" that knee with heel on the floor.

They are now in position to begin the exercise.

Dorsiflex and invert the ankle while flexing the toes.

Note: I prefer a 2:4:2 count (E:I:C) on this exercise to emphasize strength at the new end range (achieved with the ankle mobility exercises that preceded this activity).

Adjust the resistance so that 12-20 reps may be performed with optimal form.

This exercise may be progressed by using a stronger band before moving on to the more challenging exercises discussed below.

Ensure that the target leg is stable. Clients or patients who do not use the opposite foot to affix the leg may compensate by using their 

 to maintain position. This could thwart attempts to correct movement impairment by exacerbating the commonly noted over-activity of the 

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