Denna sida har översatts automatiskt och översättningens korrekthet kan inte garanteras. Vänligen se engelsk version för en källtext.

The Addition of Core Muscle Training on Tennis Serve Speed in Tennis Players

24 juli 2026 uppdaterad av: Ahmed ElMelhat, Cairo University

The Effect of Adding Core Muscle Training With Shoulder Strengthening in Tennis Players: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Compared with shoulder-only training and with continued tennis training alone, will the addition of core strengthening to shoulder training produce significantly greater improvements in flat serve ball speed in healthy tennis players?

Secondary Hypothesis:

  • Combined core + shoulder training will produce greater improvement in serve accuracy than shoulder-only training or tennis training alone.
  • Combined core + shoulder training will produce greater improvement in TGAR than shoulder-only training or tennis training alone.
  • Combined core + shoulder training will produce greater improvement in core strength/endurance and shoulder rotational strength than the comparator groups.

Studieöversikt

Detaljerad beskrivning

The kinetic chain model suggests that core musculature plays a crucial role in transferring energy from the lower body to the upper extremity during the tennis serve. However, evidence on the relationship between core strength and tennis serve (TS) ball speed and passive total glenohumeral arc of rotation (TGAR) remains inconsistent, warranting further investigation.

It is hypothesized that the addition of core muscle exercises to the training program would yield greater improvements in terms of tennis serve ball speed and TGAR when compared to a control group performing only shoulder exercises in tennis players.

Tennis players with at least 1-3 years of weekly tennis training will be included and allocated randomly into the control group (CG) and experimental group (EG). CG participants will perform shoulder exercises and sham core exercises. EG participants will receive the same training as CG in addition to performing core exercises. Both groups will participate in a 12-week intervention (2 sessions per week, 50 minutes per session). Pre- and postintervention assessments will include TS ball speed analysis and TGAR, respectively.

Studietyp

Interventionell

Inskrivning (Beräknad)

120

Fas

  • Inte tillämpbar

Kontakter och platser

Det här avsnittet innehåller kontaktuppgifter för dem som genomför studien och information om var denna studie genomförs.

Studiekontakt

Studieorter

    • Beirut
      • Beirut, Beirut, Libanon, 1100
        • Rekrytering
        • Beirut Arab University
        • Kontakt:
    • Giza
      • Beirut, Giza, Libanon, 2356
        • Rekrytering
        • BAU activities
        • Kontakt:
        • Kontakt:
          • Ahmed ELMelhat, PhD

Deltagandekriterier

Forskare letar efter personer som passar en viss beskrivning, så kallade behörighetskriterier. Några exempel på dessa kriterier är en persons allmänna hälsotillstånd eller tidigare behandlingar.

Urvalskriterier

Åldrar som är berättigade till studier

  • Vuxen

Tar emot friska volontärer

Ja

Beskrivning

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Healthy adults aged 18-35 years
  • Recreational to competitive non-professional tennis players (currently playing ≥2 sessions/week for ≥1 year; NTRP 3.0-5.0 or equivalent ITN; no professional ranking or tour-level competition history)
  • Right- or left-hand dominant (serve arm recorded)
  • Able to perform a full flat serve without pain
  • Willing to maintain current tennis training routine and refrain from starting other new strength/conditioning programs during the study

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Current or history of shoulder pain/injury in the past 6 months (e.g., rotator cuff pathology, labral injury, impingement)
  • Low back pain or lumbar spine pathology in the past 6 months
  • Prior shoulder or spine surgery
  • Systemic conditions affecting neuromuscular function (e.g., uncontrolled diabetes, neurological disorders)
  • Pregnancy
  • Current participation in a structured core or shoulder strengthening program

Studieplan

Det här avsnittet ger detaljer om studieplanen, inklusive hur studien är utformad och vad studien mäter.

Hur är studien utformad?

Designdetaljer

  • Primärt syfte: Övrig
  • Tilldelning: Randomiserad
  • Interventionsmodell: Parallellt uppdrag
  • Maskning: Enda

Vapen och interventioner

Deltagargrupp / Arm
Intervention / Behandling
Aktiv komparator: Shoulder+ sham core
Shoulder strengthening + sham/placebo core exercises (non-loading trunk mobility).

Delivered 2×/week for 10 weeks under supervision of a licensed physical therapist or certified strength and conditioning specialist. Progressive resistance program including:

  • External/internal rotation strengthening (resistance band, cable, or dumbbell) at 0° and 90° abduction
  • Scapular stabilization exercises (rows, Y-T-W raises, serratus punch)
  • Posterior shoulder stretching (sleeper stretch, cross-body stretch) for the TGAR component
  • Progressive overload every 2 weeks based on tolerated resistance/repetitions

Sham :Low-intensity, non-progressive trunk mobility exercises with minimal loading (e.g., seated trunk rotations without resistance, cat-camel stretches), matched for session time and attention to control for non-specific training effects, without targeting core strength/endurance adaptation.

Experimentell: shoulder strengthening exercises+ core strengthening
Participants in EG performed the same shoulder strengthening exercises as in CG, coupled with a physical therapy core strengthening program.

Delivered 2×/week for 10 weeks, same sessions as the shoulder program (combined ~50-60 minute sessions), progressive core program including:

  • Anti-rotation exercises (Pallof press)
  • Rotational power exercises (medicine ball rotational throws, cable woodchoppers)
  • Anterior/lateral/posterior chain stability (plank variations, side plank, bird-dog)
  • Progressive overload via increased resistance, hold time, or instability surface every 2 weeks

Vad mäter studien?

Primära resultatmått

Resultatmått
Åtgärdsbeskrivning
Tidsram
Flat serve ball speed
Tidsram: measured at baseline (Week 0) and post-intervention (Week 12).
Flat serve ball speed (km/h or mph), measured via radar gun (e.g., Stalker Pro II) or equivalent validated device, averaged across the best 5 of 10 flat serves hit into the deuce-side service box, measured at baseline (Week 0) and post-intervention (Week 12).
measured at baseline (Week 0) and post-intervention (Week 12).

Sekundära resultatmått

Resultatmått
Åtgärdsbeskrivning
Tidsram
Serve accuracy
Tidsram: measured at baseline (Week 0) and post-intervention (Week 12).
  • Target-based scoring system: standardized service box divided into scoring zones (e.g., 5 concentric/quadrant zones worth 1-5 points); participant hits 10 flat serves aimed at a designated target zone (e.g., wide serve to deuce court corner); accuracy score = mean points across 10 serves.
  • Recorded simultaneously with ball speed trials (speed-accuracy trade-off examined as an exploratory outcome).
measured at baseline (Week 0) and post-intervention (Week 12).
Total glenohumeral arc of rotation (TGAR)
Tidsram: measured at baseline (Week 0) and post-intervention (Week 12).
● Passive internal rotation (IR) + external rotation (ER) range of motion measured via goniometry (or inclinometer) with scapula stabilized, participant supine, shoulder abducted to 90°, elbow flexed to 90°. TGAR = IR + ER (degrees). Measured bilaterally.
measured at baseline (Week 0) and post-intervention (Week 12).
Shoulder rotational strength
Tidsram: measured at baseline (Week 0) and post-intervention (Week 12).
● Peak IR and ER isometric or isokinetic torque (Nm), measured via hand-held dynamometer (standardized stabilization protocol) or isokinetic dynamometer (60°/sec and 180°/sec) if available, at 0° abduction. ER/IR strength ratio calculated. Measured bilaterally.
measured at baseline (Week 0) and post-intervention (Week 12).
Core strength/endurance
Tidsram: measured at baseline (Week 0) and post-intervention (Week 12).
● McGill core endurance battery: trunk flexor endurance test (seconds), bilateral side-bridge/plank endurance test (seconds).
measured at baseline (Week 0) and post-intervention (Week 12).

Samarbetspartners och utredare

Det är här du hittar personer och organisationer som är involverade i denna studie.

Studieavstämningsdatum

Dessa datum spårar framstegen för inlämningar av studieposter och sammanfattande resultat till ClinicalTrials.gov. Studieposter och rapporterade resultat granskas av National Library of Medicine (NLM) för att säkerställa att de uppfyller specifika kvalitetskontrollstandarder innan de publiceras på den offentliga webbplatsen.

Studera stora datum

Studiestart (Faktisk)

15 juni 2026

Primärt slutförande (Beräknad)

15 september 2026

Avslutad studie (Beräknad)

20 september 2026

Studieregistreringsdatum

Först inskickad

21 juli 2026

Först inskickad som uppfyllde QC-kriterierna

24 juli 2026

Första postat (Faktisk)

29 juli 2026

Uppdateringar av studier

Senaste uppdatering publicerad (Faktisk)

29 juli 2026

Senaste inskickade uppdateringen som uppfyllde QC-kriterierna

24 juli 2026

Senast verifierad

1 juli 2026

Mer information

Termer relaterade till denna studie

Andra studie-ID-nummer

  • Core Vs shoulder in tennis

Plan för individuella deltagardata (IPD)

Planerar du att dela individuella deltagardata (IPD)?

NEJ

Läkemedels- och apparatinformation, studiedokument

Studerar en amerikansk FDA-reglerad läkemedelsprodukt

Nej

Studerar en amerikansk FDA-reglerad produktprodukt

Nej

Denna information hämtades direkt från webbplatsen clinicaltrials.gov utan några ändringar. Om du har några önskemål om att ändra, ta bort eller uppdatera dina studieuppgifter, vänligen kontakta register@clinicaltrials.gov. Så snart en ändring har implementerats på clinicaltrials.gov, kommer denna att uppdateras automatiskt även på vår webbplats .

Prenumerera