Journal of Sports Science and Medicine
Journal of Sports Science and Medicine
ISSN: 1303 - 2968   
Ios-APP Journal of Sports Science and Medicine
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©Journal of Sports Science and Medicine ( 2025 )  24 ,  755  -  763   DOI: https://doi.org/10.52082/jssm.2025.755

Research article
The Effect of The 8-Week Core Muscle Training in Swimming Time, Swimming Force and Core Muscle Activity Among Swimmers: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Wan-Yu Kwok1, Billy Chun-Lung So2,3, , Stelios G. Psycharakis4, Shamay Sheung-Mei Ng1
Author Information
1 Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China
2 Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China
3 Research Institute for Sports Science and Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China
4 Moray House School of Education & Sport, Institute for Sport, Physical Education & Health Studies, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK

Billy Chun-Lung So
✉ MN115, Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China
Email: billy.so@polyu.edu.hk
Publish Date
Received: 30-09-2024
Accepted: 02-09-2025
Published (online): 01-12-2025
Narrated in English
 
 
ABSTRACT

This intervention was conducted to evaluate the effects of 8 weeks of core training on swimming performance, force performance and core muscle activation. An 8-week core training was implemented, 32 swimmers were randomly allocated to experimental group (EG) (age: 14.38-14.88) and control group (CG) (age: 15.33-17.40). The CG maintained regular in-water training, while EG performed two additional core training a week. Swimming time, stroke rate (SR), stroke length (SL) and bilateral core muscle activity were obtained through 50 m front-crawl (FC) time trials and surface electromyography (sEMG). Moreover, the tethered swimming force was measured using the Tethered Swimming Test (TST) as a kinetic parameter. All tests were performed twice (pre- and post-intervention) to examine differences in measured parameters. No between-group differences were found. Male swimmers in EG showed within group decrease in swimming time (- 0.59 s; p < 0.05; ES = 0.827), while female swimmers in both groups showed changes in swimming velocity (EG: + 0.03 m/s; CG: + 0.02 m/s; p < 0.05). EG in male and female swimmers showed more improvement in TST than CG. For the co-contraction index (CCI) of the core muscle, no differences were demonstrated in female and male groups. This study did not indicate significant effects of core training on swimmers, additional research exploring core training is recommended to confirm these findings.

Key words: Core training, Tethered swimming force, Co-contraction index, Front crawl


           Key Points
  • Core training led to significant improvements in force measurements within the experimental group, indicating that enhanced core stability may optimize limb function through the kinetic chain.
  • Analysis of the co-contraction index revealed gender-specific responses: female swimmers generally exhibited increased co-contraction, while male swimmers showed more variable changes.
 
 
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