The effects of ball impact position on shoulder muscle activation during spiking in male volleyball players

INFLUENCES OF STRENGTH TRAINING ON ATHLETES’ SKILLS IN TABLE TENNIS

ABSTRACT Introduction The progressive advance of table tennis athletes’ competitive level demands restructuring the traditional strength training program to readjust itself to the current athletic abilities. Objective Explore a strategy based on strength training to improve table tennis athletes’ physical capacity and hitting ability. Methods Thirty table tennis students from a physical education college were selected as research volunteers. A strength training protocol was added to the traditional protocol in the experimental group. The duration of the exercises in the experimental group and the control group was the same, with a frequency of 3 times a week, totaling 9 weeks. Results The optimization scheme of the strength training combination proposed in this paper revealed an improved effect on table tennis players’ performance of hitting skills and fitness. Its range of improvement was greater than the traditional strength training scheme of the control group. Conclusion The optimization scheme combining strength training proposed in this paper can be adjusted to the training according to the athletes’ situation and benefit the athletes’ training efficiency. It can also prevent repetitive injuries caused by the standard training mode in the long run, increasing the athletes’ enthusiasm. Level of evidence II; Therapeutic studies - investigation of treatment outcomes.

INTENSIVE TRAINING EFFECTS ON SHOULDER MUSCLE INJURY IN TABLE TENNIS PLAYERS

ABSTRACT Introduction: The glenohumeral joint has the greatest range of motion. Its stability is relatively poor. It depends on muscle strengthening and increased proprioception in the articular and adjacent joint tissues. Muscle-strengthening training for this joint is still an empirical subject related to table tennis players. Objective: Explore muscle strengthening training's effect on shoulder muscle injury in table tennis players. Methods: Eight table tennis players from a university were selected as a research subject, separated, and classified between injured and control group. Three weeks of strengthening training were adopted to rehabilitate the rotator cuff injury of the table tennis team athletes. The joint angle test and kinematics were collected with isokinetic force measurement employing Cybex-6000. The EMG and other relevant data were collected before and after the experiment. Results: The infraspinatus strength test results of 8 athletes before the experiment were 1.88 ± 2.10 versus 1.61 ± 1.80 after the experiment; there was no change in pain among 5 of the eight athletes, the shoulder pain of 1 athlete increased, and the shoulder pain of the other 2 table tennis players decreased. Conclusion: Strengthening exercise by intensive shoulder training proved effective in conjunction with traditional rehabilitation, positively influencing hypertrophy and proprioception of the joint complex. Evidence Level II; Therapeutic Studies – Investigating the results.

Mechanical Hyperalgesia but Not Forward Shoulder Posture Is Associated with Shoulder Pain in Volleyball Players: A Cross-Sectional Study

Shoulder antepulsion, altered scapular kinematics and imbalance of muscle activity are commonly associated with shoulder pain. This study aimed to observe if there is an association between the forward shoulder angle (FSA) and the pectoralis minor length index (PMI) in volleyball players with and without shoulder pain. Furthermore, this study observed if there is an association between shoulder posture and upper limb mechanical hyperalgesia in volleyball players with and without shoulder pain. Methods: a cross-sectional study was conducted in the Physiotherapy and Pain Research Center in Alcalá de Henares (Spain). A total of 56 volleyball players met the inclusion criteria and agreed to enter the study. Subjects were divided into two groups: shoulder pain group (SPG) and control group (without pain). The following measurements of the dominant sides of the players were collected: FSA, PMI, and pressure pain threshold (PPT) in serratus anterior, lower trapezius, infraspinatus, teres minor, upper trapezius, levator scapulae, pectoralis major, radial nerve, cubital nerve, and median nerve. Results: The Spearman’s Rho revealed no significant correlations were found between FSA and PMI. Moreover, Spearman’s Rho test revealed in the SPG a negative moderate correlation between FSA and Infraspinatus-PPT (Rho = −0.43; p = 0.02); FSA and levator scapulae-PPT (Rho = −0.55; p < 0.01); FSA and pectoralis major-PPT (Rho = −0.41; p = 0.02); PMI and cubital nerve-PPT (Rho = −0.44; p = 0.01). Conclusions: No association was found between the forward shoulder angle and the pectoralis minor index in volleyball players with and without shoulder pain. There is a moderate negative association between shoulder forward angle and muscle mechanical hyperalgesia in volleyball players with shoulder pain, but no such associations were found in volleyball players without shoulder pain. Treatment of the infraspinatus, levator scapulae, pectoralis major, and pectoralis minor muscles could improve shoulder pain and ulnar nerve mechanosensitivity.