Research summary · Training and performance
Whole-chain training improved swimming tests, without directly testing injury prevention
Twenty-six adolescent swimmers completed an eight-week comparison of shoulder-focused exercise, a comprehensive program adding scapular, core and neuromuscular work, and a control condition. The groups contained nine, nine and eight participants respectively. Outcomes were upper-quarter dynamic stability and 50-metre front-crawl tests.
- Publication year
- 2026
- First published online
- Publication type
- Three-arm randomized controlled trial
- Journal
- Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies
- Population / context
- Swimming · Male adolescents
What the publication reports
The comprehensive group improved stability in all tested directions and had better front-crawl time and overall performance than the comparison groups. The reported time difference was −9.6 seconds (95% CI −16.4 to −2.8). These are functional and performance outcomes, not evidence that fewer shoulder injuries occurred.
Limits and interpretation
Only 26 male adolescents were studied over eight weeks. Injury incidence was not an outcome, so the article's prevention framing should not be read as demonstrated injury reduction. Small groups and a local sample limit generalization to elite or female swimmers.
Read the source
Consult the original record for the full author list, methods, references, funding and competing-interest disclosures.
Comprehensive injury prevention training significantly enhances upper limb dynamic stability and front crawl performance in adolescent swimmers: A randomized controlled trial
Original publication / indexed recordPMID: 41927199DOI: 10.1016/j.jbmt.2025.12.002Reader discussion
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