The effects of 10-week core exercises on the core strength and maximal strength in male weight-lifters

This study has been carried out to analyse the effect of 10 weeks of core training on sportsmen's maximum strength and core strength. The training has been completed by male weight-lifters. This study included 20 male sportsmen who train regularly at Iraq Weight Lifting Centre. 10 of those subjects were chosen randomly and they were in subject group. The other 10 of them were in controlled group, in total the study has two groups. The participants were involved in a training programme three times a week through 10 weeks with the company of a trainer. Core training programme was also applied by the subject group additionally. Antropometric measurements were taken before and at the end of the programmes from the subject and controlled groups (weight, height, waist, chest, hip, biceps, thigh and calf of the leg). Maximal Strength Measurements (clean and jerk, snatch, squad maximal strengths) and Core Strength Measurements (Plank, body flection, body extension, lateral flection) were also taken. As statistical methods, Mann-Whitney U test was utilised to compare the subject and the controlled groups. To determine the change before and after the training, Wilcoxon test was used in this study. Statistical Importance Level was accepted as p<0.05. After the 10-week weight lifting and core training programme, in maximal strength measurements, a significant improvement was observed in the subject group's pre test-post test maximal snatch (Z=-2.840 and p=.005), maximal clean and jerk (Z=-2.820 and p=.005), maximal squad (Z=-2.829 and p=.005) and maximal bench press (Z=-2.823 and p=.005) average measurement rates. Similarly, another significant improvement (p<0.05) was observed in the controlled group's maximal snatch (Z=-2.825) and p=.005), maximal clean and jerk (Z=-2.877 and p=.004), maximal squad (Z=-2.840 and p=.005) and maximal bench press (Z=-2.814 and p=005) measurements. In core strength measurements, some improvement was observed in the subject group's pre test-post test plank (Z=-2.807 and p=.005), body flection (Z=-2.807 and p=.005), body extension (Z=-2.809 and p=.005) and lateral flection (Z=-2.809 and p=.005) average measurements. On the other hand, for the controlled group there was statistically a significant improvement only in plank measurements (Z=-2.299 and p=.021), one of the core strength measurements. As a consequence, the applied weight-lifting and core exercises caused to increase biceps, thigh and calf measurements by decreasing waist and hip measurements. Yet, they could not lead to a change in body's weight. Both in the subject and controlled groups, if we examine the pre test-post test maximal strength measurements, we can see that more improvement was observed in the subject group that applied weight lifting and core exercises programmes. In other words, core exercise programmes increased the maximal strength test results together with weight lifting exercises. Besides, it led to significant increase in the pre test-post test average measurements of the subject group's core strength plank, body flection, body extension and lateral flection measurements. Thus, it can be claimed that weight lifting exercises which are done with core exercises can have positive effects on the improvement of antropometric parameters, maximal and core strengths.