Background/Purpose: Poor core strength/endurance in youth has been associated with low back pain (LBP). LBP tracks to adulthood with $90 billion in associated health care spending. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a dynamic core conditioning routine on tests of trunk strength/endurance in youth.
Method: One hundred sixty-three students (85 girls; 78 boys) enrolled in the 4th-8th grades (mean age 11.5 ± 2.5 years) performed one moderate to high-intensity dynamic core conditioning warm-up routine once a week in a physical education class for a period of six weeks. The warm-up protocol consisted of 10 different dynamic core conditioning exercises lasting 30 seconds each for a warm-up routine totaling 5 minutes. Pre and post assessments were conducted consisting of six different trunk strength/endurance tests.
Analysis/Results: Analysis of the data revealed a significant increase in core strength/endurance in each of the six measured outcomes: Lateral Muscle Test (Pre – 57.40 sec.; Post – 66.90 sec.; p<.001), Plank Test (Pre – 93.81 sec.; Post – 124.40 sec.; p<.001), Static Curl-Up Test (Pre – 111.84 sec.; Post – 150.72 sec.; p<.001) , Dynamic Curl-Up Test (Pre – 31.66 reps.; Post – 45.83 reps.; p<.001), Parallel Roman Chair Static Trunk Extension (Pre – 99.51 sec.; Post – 142.87 sec.; p<.001), and Parallel Roman Chair Dynamic Back Extension (Pre – 24.14 reps.; Post – 31.96 reps.; p<.001).
Conclusions: The results suggest that children and adolescents can improve trunk strength/endurance by performing moderate to high-intensity dynamic core exercises as little as once per week.