Effect of exercise order with barbell and machine modalities on upper body volume load and myoelectric activity

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of exercise order on volume load (VL) and myoelectric activation (EMG) during the bench press (BP), military press (MP) and close-grip bench press (CGBP) exercises executed with a barbell and Smith machine. Twelve men experienced in resistance training performed four different exercise sessions in randomised order. Each session consisted of four sets of a given exercise order: O1 = CGBP + MP + BP with barbell; O2 = inverse O1 with barbell, O3 = same O1 with Smith Machine; O4 = same O2 with Smith machine. EMG was assessed for the Clavicular head