Muscle Thickness During Core Stability Exercises in Children and Adults

Kellis, Eleftherios; Ellinoudis, Athanasios; Intziegianni, Konstantina; Kofotolis, Nikolaos

doi:10.2478/hukin-2019-0079

Cited by 12 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 49 publications

(100 reference statements)

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“…The degrees of freedom (df), mean square error (MSE), F or t values, and effect sizes (η 2 or Cohen's d) were reported for each test. Post hoc comparisons In a previous study, the inter-examiner and intra-examiner reliability of TrA muscle thickness at rest and contraction was examined, and the reliability was high with intraclass correlation coefficients ranging from 0.86 to 0.97 at rest, from 0.89 to 0.97 during ADIM, and from 0.77 to 0.98 for the relative thickness values [6].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transversus Abdominis Ultrasound Thickness during Popular Trunk–Pilates Exercises in Young and Middle-Aged Women

Tsartsapakis

Gerou

Kouthouris

et al. 2023

JFMK

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The transversus abdominis (TrA) is a core muscle that contributes to functional mobility and lumbar stability. This study aimed to compare the changes in TrA thickness during different Pilates exercises, and to identify the exercise that elicited the greatest TrA activation. Forty-four healthy women were divided into two groups: young (25–35 years old) and middle-aged (36–55 years old). TrA thickness was assessed by ultrasound while the participants performed five Pilates exercises: basic position, hundred, hip roll, side plank, and dead bug. A repeated measures analysis of variance revealed that the dead bug exercise induced a significantly higher increase in TrA thickness (relative to rest) than the other exercises (p < 0.05). The young group also showed a significantly higher overall TrA thickness than the middle-aged group (p < 0.05). The findings suggest that the dead bug exercise is the most effective for enhancing TrA activation among the Pilates exercises tested. The basic position and the hundred exercises can be used as warm-up exercises before performing more challenging exercises such as the hip roll, the side plank, and the dead bug. The sequence of exercises can be similar for both young and middle-aged women.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transversus Abdominis Ultrasound Thickness during Popular Trunk–Pilates Exercises in Young and Middle-Aged Women

Tsartsapakis

Gerou

Kouthouris

et al. 2023

JFMK

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“…US imaging can reliably evaluate changes in the size of key local core muscles, such as the transversus abdominis (TrA), the deeper part of the lumbar multifidus (LM), and the internal oblique (IO) [ 23 ]. This technique provides an index on muscle activation via the measurement of muscle thickness at rest and during contraction [ 24 ]. Surface EMG can provide measurements on the activation of the superficial (global) muscles, such as the surface part of the iliocostalis lumborum (IL), the external oblique (EO), and the rectus abdominis (RA) [ 19 , 25 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spinal Muscle Thickness and Activation during Abdominal Hollowing and Bracing in CrossFit® Athletes

Tsartsapakis,

Pantazi,

Konstantinidou

et al. 2023

Sports

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Exercises that improve muscle activation are essential for maintaining spinal stability and preventing low back pain. The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of abdominal hollowing and bracing on the activation of the core muscles in CrossFit® participants using ultrasound and electromyography (EMG). Twenty-four healthy adults aged 21 to 42 years old with at least two years of CrossFit® experience performed three core stability exercises (plank, side plank, bridge) with abdominal hollowing and bracing. We measured the ultrasound relative thickness of the local core muscles (transversus abdominis, internal oblique, and lumbar multifidus), and the EMG percentage of maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) of the global core muscles (rectus abdominis, external oblique, and iliocostalis lumborum). Analysis of variance tests showed that the relative thickness of the local core muscles was greater (p = 0.016) during hollowing (range from 26.8 ± 5.33 to 88.4 ± 11.9% of rest) than bracing (range from 15.9 ± 3.54 to 61.2 ± 15.9% of rest), while the EMG of the global muscles was greater (p = 0.001) in bracing (range from 24.4 ± 7.30 to 72.5 ± 9.17% of MVC) than hollowing (range from 16.4 ± 3.70 to 56.6 ± 7.65% of MVC). These results indicate that the recruitment of spinal muscles during popular exercises is achieved with both hollowing and bracing. Nevertheless, it appears that hollowing tends to recruit more of the local muscles, whilst bracing recruits more of the global muscles. The grading of the exercises varied between muscles and varied between maneuvers, especially for the surface abdominals and lumbar muscles. CrossFit® practitioners can choose to use either hollowing or bracing to activate their core muscles more selectively or more appropriately, depending on the goal and purpose of the exercise.

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“…The first probe was used to measure the thickness of the TrA and IO muscles, and another probe was used to measure the thickness of the LM. For the TrA and IO, the probe was positioned 2.5 cm above the iliac crest and along the axillary line [ 13 ]. The probe was oriented in the transverse plane, perpendicular to the muscle fibers, and situated 2 cm to the left of the center of the US image when the subject was relaxed.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Studies have utilized ultrasound (US) imaging to measure the thickness of the deeper abdominal and spinal muscles at rest and during exercise, which is an indirect index of muscle contraction/activation during exercise [ 11 , 12 , 13 ]. The studies above commonly conclude that an ultrasound measurement of the trunk muscle thickness is a reliable method that can provide useful information about the function of these muscles.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Comparison between Core Stability Exercises and Muscle Thickness Using Two Different Activation Maneuvers

Tsartsapakis,

Bagioka,

Fountoukidou

et al. 2024

JFMK

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Core stability training is crucial for competitive athletes, individuals who want to improve their health and physical performance, and those undergoing clinical rehabilitation. This study compared the ultrasound (US) muscle thickness of the abdominals and lumbar multifidus (LM) muscles between seven popular trunk stability exercises performed using hollowing and bracing maneuvers. Forty-four healthy young adults, aged between 21 and 32 years, performed a plank, bird dog, beast crawl, dead bug, Pilates tap, bridge, and side planks using the bracing and the hollowing maneuver. The thickness of the transversus abdominis (TrA), internal oblique (IO), and LM muscles was measured simultaneously using two ultrasound machines. Analysis of variance designs indicated that during hollowing, the bird dog and side plank exercises resulted in the greatest increase in the muscle’s relative thickness overall. The relative thickness of all muscles was significantly greater (p < 0.001) during hollowing (22.7 ± 7.80 to 106 ± 24.5% of rest) compared to bracing (18.7 ± 7.40 to 87.1 ± 20.9% of rest). The TrA showed the greatest increase in thickness (p < 0.001) compared to the IO and LM. Additionally, the IO had a greater increase in thickness (p < 0.001) than the LM. In conclusion, our findings indicate that the bird dog and side plank exercises, when performed with hollowing, showed the most significant total muscle thickness increase. Notably, the hollowing maneuver enhances the thickness of the TrA, IO, and LM muscles more than the bracing maneuver. This contributes to the discussion on optimal strategies for dynamic core stabilization.

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Muscle Thickness During Core Stability Exercises in Children and Adults

Cited by 12 publications

References 49 publications

Transversus Abdominis Ultrasound Thickness during Popular Trunk–Pilates Exercises in Young and Middle-Aged Women

Transversus Abdominis Ultrasound Thickness during Popular Trunk–Pilates Exercises in Young and Middle-Aged Women

Spinal Muscle Thickness and Activation during Abdominal Hollowing and Bracing in CrossFit® Athletes

A Comparison between Core Stability Exercises and Muscle Thickness Using Two Different Activation Maneuvers

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