Table 2.
Descriptive statistics for serratus anterior, lower trapezius, and upper trapezius muscle activity level represented as maximum voluntary isometric contraction (% MVIC) and associated 95% confidence intervals (95% CI)
| Exercise | Activation level category | Mean(% MVIC) | SD (% MVIC) | Lower boundary 95% CI (% MVIC) | Upper boundary 95% CI (% MVIC) | Post hoc analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Serratus anterior | ||||||
|
| ||||||
| SA punch | Very high | 73.7 | ± 19.2 | 59.9 | 87.4 | > T, DH |
| Scaption | Very high | 62.1 | ± 19.9 | 48.2 | 76.3 | > T, DH |
| Dynamic hug | Moderate | 32.4 | ± 8.8 | 26.1 | 38.6 | < S, > T, < SAP |
| “T” | Low | 16.5 | ± 12.0 | 8.0 | 25.1 | < S, DH, SAP |
|
| ||||||
| Lower trapezius | ||||||
|
| ||||||
| “T” | Very high | 69.3 | ± 38.9 | 41.5 | 97.1 | > DH, SAP |
| Scaption | Moderate | 49.1 | ± 30.4 | 27.3 | 70.8 | > DH, SAP |
| Dynamic hug | Low | 19.4 | ± 22.1 | 3.6 | 3.5 | < S, T |
| SA punch | Low | 14.6 | ± 13.6 | 4.9 | 2.4 | < S, T |
|
| ||||||
| Upper trapezius | ||||||
|
| ||||||
| SA punch | Low | 4.9 | ± 5.0 | 1.3 | 8.4 | < S, T |
| Dynamic hug | Low | 5.6 | ± 5.1 | 2.0 | 9.3 | < S, T |
| Scaption | High | 50.6 | ± 21.4 | 35.3 | 65.9 | > DH, SAP |
| “T” | High | 54.9 | ± 29.9 | 33.5 | 76.3 | > DH, SAP |
Note: Bonferroni post hoc analysis revealed multiple significant differences between exercises (p < .05). Differences between exercises are identified by the following abbreviations: scaption (S), T (T), dynamic hug (DH), SA punch (SAP). Exercises are displayed in rank order for each muscle from most to least optimal muscle activation. Each exercise is categorized by activation level from low (0%–20% MVIC), moderate (21%–40% MVIC), high (41%–60% MVIC), and very high (>60% MVIC).