Table 4.
Descriptive statistics of electromyographic activity (expressed as millivolts, mV) in each study by exercise.
| Reference | Core Exercise | RA | IO | EO | TA | MUL | ES | Conclusion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andersen et al. (2019) [40] | Deadlift | ~0.34 | Deadlift with four elastic bands elicited greater EMG activity compared to deadlift with two elastic bands. | |||||
| Deadlift with 2 elastic bands | ~0.34 | |||||||
| Deadlift with 4 elastic bands | ~0.36 | |||||||
| Van den Tillaar & Saeterbakken (2018) [28] | Front plank with 20% of extra body mass | ~0.25 | ~0.20 | ~0.07 | Greater RA activation was found during the front plank exercise, but the squat elicited greater ES and external EO activation. | |||
| 6RM squat | ~0.17 | ~0.30 | ~0.35 | |||||
| Patterson et al. (2015) [34] | Bench press 70% RM | ~0.02 | ~0.01 | No significant differences were found between these conditions. | ||||
| Unilateral bench press 70% RM | ~0.05 | ~0.02 | ||||||
| Bench press on unstable bench 70% RM | ~0.02 | ~0.01 | ||||||
| Unilateral bench press on unstable bench 70% RM | ~0.05 | ~0.02 | ||||||
| Saeterbakken et al. (2014) [16] | 10RM Sit-up | Upper: 0.27 ± 0.11 Lower: 0.54 ± 0.24 |
0.41 ± 0.17 | The greatest EMG activity was observed when adding whole-body instability with the BOSU on the feet and low back. In addition, EMG was greater in lower RA than upper RA during sit-ups. | ||||
| 10RM Sit-up with the feet on BOSU (lower-body instability) | Upper: 0.26 ± 0.11 Lower: 0.53 ± 0.25 |
0.38 ± 0.16 | ||||||
| 10RM Sit-up with the low back on BOSU (upper-body instability) | Upper: 0.33 ± 0.14 Lower: 0.65 ± 0.33 |
0.42 ± 0.17 | ||||||
| 10RM Sit-up with the feet and low back on BOSU (whole-body instability) | Upper: 0.33 ± 0.13 Lower: 0.59 ± 0.28 |
0.44 ± 0.22 | ||||||
| Van den Tillaar & Saeterbakken (2014) [76] | Bench press | ~0.15 | ~0.10 | ~0.06 | Bench press elicited greater activation of the RA than EO and ES. | |||
| Saeterbakken et al. (2014) [77] | Back squat | 0.06 ± 0.07 | 0.06 ± 0.05 | 0.21 ± 0.09 | No significant differences were found between these conditions. | |||
| Back squat with elastic bands | 0.06 ± 0.08 | 0.06 ± 0.08 | 0.21 ± 0.10 | |||||
| Wagner et al. (2014) [31] | Crunch | ~0.09 | ~0.08 | ~0.08 | Crunch elicited greater RA activity than laughter yoga, but this exercise showed greater IO activation than crunch. | |||
| Climax laughter | ~0.04 | ~0.11 | ~0.07 | |||||
| Saeterbakken et al. (2013) [83] | Back squat | 0.03 ± 0.01 | 0.06 ± 0.02 | 0.31 ± 0.12 | No significant differences were found between the exercises. Back squat shows greater ES activation than RA and EO. | |||
| Back squat on power board | 0.04 ± 0.02 | 0.07 ± 0.03 | 0.29 ± 0.13 | |||||
| Back squat on BOSU | 0.03 ± 0.01 | 0.06 ± 0.03 | 0.25 ± 0.10 | |||||
| Back squat on balance cone | 0.03 ± 0.01 | 0.07 ± 0.02 | 0.28 ± 0.08 | |||||
| Saeterbakken et al. (2013) [84] | Bench press | 0.03 ± 0.03 | 0.06 ± 0.02 | 0.14 ± 0.06 | RA activation was greater when performing the bench press on a Swiss ball than on a stable bench. The balance cushion elicited greater ES activity than the rest of the exercises. | |||
| Bench press on a balance cushion | 0.03 ± 0.02 | 0.06 ± 0.02 | 0.16 ± 0.05 | |||||
| Bench press on a Swiss ball | 0.05 ± 0.04 | 0.06 ± 0.02 | 0.13 ± 0.05 | |||||
| Pirouzi et al. (2013) [85] | Bird dog | 1.63 ± 1.35 | 2.63 ± 3.11 | 0.86 ± 1.01 | Bird dog elicited the greatest activation in transversus abdominis. | |||
| Saeterbakken & Steiro (2012) [86] | Seated dumbbell press (bilateral) 80% RM | 0.03 ± 0.02 | 0.06 ± 0.03 | 0.06 ± 0.04 | Greater EMG activity was found when exercises were performed standing compared to seated and unilaterally compared to bilaterally. | |||
| Seated dumbbell press (unilateral) 80% RM | 0.02 ± 0.01 | 0.30 ± 0.15 | 0.10 ± 0.07 | |||||
| Standing dumbbell press (bilateral) 80% RM | 0.09 ± 0.05 | 0.14 ± 0.08 | 0.08 ± 0.11 | |||||
| Standing dumbbell press (unilateral) 80% RM | 0.08 ± 0.04 | 0.42 ± 0.19 | 0.09 ± 0.12 | |||||
| Tarnanen et al. (2012) [87] | Trunk flexion | ~0.09 | ~0.09 | ~0.01 | Upper limb exercises can effectively activate core muscles. Bilateral and unilateral shoulder extension, as well as unilateral shoulder horizontal adduction and abduction, elicited the greatest EMG activity in core muscles. | |||
| Trunk lateral flexion | ~0.04 | ~0.09 | ~0.03 | |||||
| Trunk extension | ~0.01 | ~0.03 | ~0.08 | |||||
| Bilateral shoulder extension | ~0.08 | ~0.05 | ~0.01 | |||||
| Unilateral shoulder adduction | ~0.05 | ~0.06 | ~0.01 | |||||
| Unilateral shoulder abduction | ~0.01 | ~0.04 | ~0.05 | |||||
| Unilateral shoulder flexion | ~0.01 | ~0.05 | ~0.02 | |||||
| Unilateral shoulder extension | ~0.02 | ~0.04 | ~0.05 |
EMG: electromyographic activity; % MVIC: percentage of maximum voluntary isometric contraction; RM: maximum repetition; BW: body weight; RA: rectus abdominis; IO: internal oblique; EO: external oblique; TA: transversus abdominis; MUL: lumbar multifidus; ES: erector spinae.