Neuromuscular electrical stimulation enhances neuromuscular activation and motor performance in badminton players during forward lunge footwork

Background Forward lunge footwork is a key badminton-specific movement requiring rapid initiation, landing control, postural stability, and push-off recovery. This study examined whether pre-competition neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) combined with weighted squats improves forward lunge performance and neuromuscular control in badminton players. Methods Thirty-six male badminton players were randomly assigned to three groups: weighted squats, fake stimulation combined with weighted squats, and real NMES combined with weighted squats. All participants completed the assigned pre-activation intervention followed by six valid badminton-specific star-shuttle trials. Forward lunge performance was assessed using total completion time. Surface electromyography was recorded from 14 right-side muscles, and high-speed video was used to identify the forward lunge movement cycle. Integrated EMG, co-activation index, and intermuscular time-frequency coherence were calculated. Between-group differences were analyzed using one-way ANOVA with correction for multiple comparisons. Results The Real Stimulation group showed significantly shorter completion time than the Weighted Squats and Fake Stimulation groups. Compared with the other two groups, the Real Stimulation group also demonstrated higher iEMG in GLM, VL, VM, LD, and ABS, as well as greater co-activation of VL–BF and GLM–BF. Intermuscular time-frequency coherence was also enhanced in selected muscle pairs across α, β, and γ frequency bands, indicating stronger task-specific neuromuscular coupling during the forward lunge cycle. Conclusion Pre-competition NMES combined with weighted squats improved badminton-specific forward lunge performance. This improvement was accompanied by increased activation of key lower-limb and trunk-related muscles, enhanced lower-limb co-activation, and stronger frequency-specific intermuscular coherence. These findings suggest that NMES may be an effective adjunct strategy for acute badminton pre-activation.