19 January 2025: Clinical Research
Impact of Smovey Vibration Versus Dumbbell Resistance on Muscle Activation in Women
Donghun Seong1ABCDEF, Juyeon Lee2ABCDEF*DOI: 10.12659/MSM.946567
Med Sci Monit 2025; 31:e946567
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The Smovey Vibroswing exercise device consists of a circular tube containing 4 steel balls, partly covered by a cushioning handle, to strengthen the arm and shoulder muscles. This study aimed to compare the effects of using a Smovey Vibroswing versus dumbbell exercises on muscle activity and body composition of the upper limbs in 23 women under 30 years of age.
MATERIAL AND METHODS: Subjects were 23 women under the age of 30 years, residing in South Korea, with no musculoskeletal diseases or shoulder surgeries in the past year. Shoulder flexion-extension and abduction-adduction exercises were conducted using Smovey Vibroswing or 2-kg dumbbells. Electromyography (EMG) was used to measure muscle activity in the upper extremities. Data analysis was performed using two-way ANOVA with repeated measures, considering differences significant at P<.05.
RESULTS: Exercise using the Smovey Vibroswing provided vibratory stimulation that improved muscle activity, coordination, and stability in the upper arm muscles of women under 30 years of age. Muscle activation in specific muscles, such as the anterior deltoid, biceps brachii, and brachioradialis, was significantly higher during Smovey exercises compared to dumbbell exercises (P<.05).
CONCLUSIONS: The vibratory stimulation of Smovey was found to improve upper-limb muscle activity and positively affect stability and coordination in women. These findings suggest that Smovey can serve as a safer, more controllable alternative for resistance exercise. This study highlights the need for standardized Smovey exercise programs, especially tailored for varying ages and fitness levels.
Keywords: Exercise, Female, Muscles, Shoulder, Electromyography
Introduction
Recent statistics showed that 23.3% of women and 9.7% of men experience shoulder joint musculoskeletal symptoms. The number of females experiencing shoulder-related conditions was more than twice that of males [1]. Moreover, since the prevalence of musculoskeletal conditions is gradually increasing in elderly people and in people younger than age 30, preventive care measures, attention, and caution are needed in people of all ages [2]. For smooth synchronous movement of the shoulder, force needs to be applied with the integrated action of muscles that surround the shoulder joint when exercising [3]. Smovey MED was first invented by a tennis player, Salzhans, after a diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease. He created a small fitness tool with the closed-loop swinging system that produces active vibrations after realizing that movements of tennis serve and backhand and forehand swings allowed physical improvement. The movement of metal balls rolling inside the oval-shaped plastic tube produces a vibration by hitting against the tubes [4]. Each Smovey ring contains 4 metal balls that create a vibration of 60 Hz. Vibrations are effective in core muscle activation and stabilization of the spine and improve lymphatic and systemic circulation by stimulating nerve roots [5]. Vibrations produced during a Smovey swinging workout are transmitted through the handle of the ring to the palms of the hand, and this vibration stimulation, acting on the meridians of the palms, significantly improves the morphology and functional development of muscle fibers and imbalance of muscle control by enhancing activation of muscle spindles [6,7].
Vibrations produced while swinging the Smovey rings increase muscle activity by stimulating the muscles of the palms and upper limbs, and co-contraction is generated during movements of agonist and synergist muscles to maintain body posture [8]. Vibrations created by the swinging motion directly influence stimulated muscles and adjacent muscles, and contribute to lumbar and spinal stabilization and core muscle strengthening in women [5,9].
Weight training using dumbbells stimulates muscles of different body parts and this process improves body composition, muscular strength and endurance, and muscle power [10]. Several previous studies reported that resistance exercise using dumbbells for shoulder workout increased range of motion (ROM) and muscle strength, decreased body fat, and relieved pain [11–14].
The vibrations generated during Smovey exercise selectively affect specific body muscles and segments [15]. Exercise using dumbbells, the most popular free-weight workout tool, increases muscle strength and motor function through muscle contraction driven by external stimulation [16]. Dumbbell training typically is performed to improve muscle strength, but carries a risk of injuries [17]. Whole-body vibration exercise is suggested as an alternative option for safer physical workout without injury or pain by achieving results similar to outcomes of resistance exercise [19]. Although many studies have been performed to enhance the posture and motion control, muscle strength, and ROM of whole-body vibration exercise machines, the effect of passive vibration exercises has been mainly described [19,20]. Even though active vibration exercise has physiological benefits from vibrations producing muscle contractions simultaneously and can selectively affect segments, it has been insufficiently investigated [21]. Moreover, a comparative study on muscle activities during active exercises by holding Smovey and dumbbell in hands has not yet been conducted. Studies on active vibration exercises that can selectively affect specific muscles and segments depending on the characteristics of training tools are thought to be warranted. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the effects of shoulder joint exercises with Smovey rings and dumbbells on upper-extremity muscle activity in 23 women younger than 30 years.
Material and Methods
SUBJECTS:
The subjects were 23 women under 30 years of age and residing in S city, South Korea. The study included participants with no shoulder or upper-limb instability or musculoskeletal diseases, and those with no history of shoulder surgery over the last year. The physical characteristics of the female subjects were 22.13±2.49 (years), 162.40±4.94 (cm), 58.03±6.79 (kg), and 22.00±2.23 (kg/m2).
All subjects voluntarily participated in the study after being fully informed of the research purposes, procedures, and ethical issues. This study was performed after gaining written consent from all participants and IRB approval from Kyungpook National University (IRB No. 2023-0506).
MEASUREMENT INSTRUMENTS AND METHODS:
The measurement instruments used in this study are shown in Table 1.
BODY COMPOSITION TEST:
A body composition analyzer (InBody 570, Korea) was used to determine the physical characteristics of the subjects, including height, weight, BMI, and muscle mass. Prior to the measurements, the participants were instructed to remove all metal jewelry, wear light clothing, and step on the analyzer footpads with bare feet to measure height. They were asked to maintain the posture by holding both hand electrodes of the analyzer until all measurements were completed, and step off the unit after the measurement results were obtained.
MUSCLE ACTIVITY TEST: The muscle activity of subjects was measured using the 6-channel surface EMG TeleMyo 2400 System (Noraxon, USA) in major recruited muscles. The electrodes were attached to 6 muscles – anterior deltoid, middle deltoid, biceps brachii, triceps brachii, flexor carpi radialis, and brachioradialis – to measure muscle activity (Figure 1). All 23 subjects were instructed to conduct 4 different movements, repeating each motion 10 times with EMG electrodes attached to measure muscle activity during shoulder exercises.
Each exercise movement was repeated 10 times with a 1-minute rest interval between sets. EMG was attached to 6 target muscles, and muscle activity obtained for comparison of different muscles was standardized by comparing the mean values of the 10 times repeated measurements using maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC). Muscle activity was quantified based on signals produced by the same muscle. Detailed instructions were given to participants, and MVIC of each muscle was repeated measured 3 times. To minimize muscle fatigue during repeated measurements, a 1-minute rest interval was provided between measurements.
To remove any noise occurring during movement, the raw EMG signals were filtered and rectified, and the root mean square (RMS) was calculated for analysis. For normalization of muscle activity, the analyzed data were standardized to RMS values based on MVIC measures. The equation for standardization is shown below:
SMOVEY EXERCISE: Smovey equipment is divided into 4 types – light, classic, aqua, and power models – according to the size and weight of subjects. The subjects in this study used a classic Smovey ring (Smovey MED, SMOVEY, Switzerland) that was 27.5 cm wide and 20 cm long, and weighed about 1 kg. All movements were repeated 10 times at 80 bpm of 4/4 time by holding the black handle of Smovey in a standing position. The first movement was an up-down swing motion by repeating swinging both arms forward and back at 90° shoulder flexion-extension (Figure 2A). The second movement was a parallel side-swing motion from side to side at 90° shoulder abduction-adduction (Figure 2B). Static stretching was done during warm-up and cool-down periods given for 5 minutes each.
DUMBBELL EXERCISE: A 2-kg dumbbell was used in this research. All movements were repeated 10 times utilizing existing weight training methods at 80 bpm of 4/4 time by holding dumbbells in a standing position. The first movement was a front raise by raising up and lowering back down both arms at 90° shoulder flexion-extension (Figure 2C). The second movement was a side lateral raise by lifting dumbbells with arms up and down sideways at 90° shoulder abduction-adduction (Figure 2D). Static stretching was done during warm-up and cool-down periods given for 5 minutes each.
STATISTICAL ANALYSIS:
All statistical analyses were performed using SPSS 26.0 software. The mean and standard deviation of muscle activity in women were calculated and are presented in tables according to exercise type. Two-way ANOVA with repeated measures was used to compare 2 means from repeated measures. A paired-sample
Results
MUSCLE ACTIVITY DURING SHOULDER FLEXION-EXTENSION EXERCISE:
Changes in upper-extremity muscle activity were compared according to exercise equipment during shoulder flexion-extension exercises. The study results are presented in Table 2. Muscle activity of anterior deltoid during the flexion-extension exercises of the shoulder joint changed to 90.15±17.96 using Smovey rings and 117.92±54.17 using dumbbells. A significant difference was found in dumbbell exercise (t=2.963, P<.007). Middle deltoid muscle activity was 37.62±30.29 during Smovey workout and 54.07±26.66 during dumbbell workout. A significant difference was demonstrated in dumbbell exercise (t=−3.025, P<.006). Muscle activity of biceps brachii changed to 54.79±46.18 during Smovey exercise and 35.51±19.25 during dumbbell exercise. A significant difference was shown in Smovey exercise (t=2.219, P<.037). Muscle activity of triceps brachii was 32.14±17.11 during Smovey exercise and 24.64±22.6 during dumbbell exercise, and the difference was not significant (t=−1.883, P<073). Muscle activity of flexor carpi radialis changed to 35.31±26.14 during Smovey exercise and 23.96±11.17 during dumbbell exercise. The change in muscle activity was significantly higher using Smovey (t=−2.612, P<.016). Brachioradialis muscle activity was 59.11±25.82 during Smovey exercise and 40.78±20.37 during dumbbell exercise, and the difference was significant (t=−3.235, p<.004).
MUSCLE ACTIVITY DURING SHOULDER ABDUCTION-ADDUCTION EXERCISE:
Changes in upper-extremity muscle activity were compared according to exercise equipment used during shoulder abduction-adduction exercises. The study results are presented in Table 3. Anterior deltoid muscle activity during the abduction-adduction exercises of the shoulder joint changed to 70.02±26.79 using Smovey rings and 75.12±25.83 using dumbbells, and the difference was not significant (t=1.125, P<273). Middle deltoid muscle activity was 83.02±22.92 during Smovey workout and 88.79±30.05 during dumbbell workout, and the difference was significant (t=−3.975, P<.001). Biceps brachii muscle activity changed to 60.61±35.46 during Smovey exercise and 50.29±32.73 during dumbbell exercise, showing a statistically significant difference (t=−2.635, P<015). Biceps brachii muscle activity was 60.61±35.46 during Smovey and 50.29±32.73 during dumbbell exercise, and a statistically significant difference was found (t=−2.635, P<015). Triceps brachii muscle activity was 55.50±28.60 during Smovey exercise and 46.65±22.56 during dumbbell exercise, which was a significant difference (t=−3.285, P<004).
Discussion
This study was performed to assess the effect of shoulder flexion-extension and abduction-adduction exercises using Smovey and dumbbells on the upper-extremity muscle activity of young women. The following results are obtained in this study.
First, muscle activities were significantly high in anterior deltoid (
Second, muscle activities were significantly higher in biceps brachii (
Several previous studies reported that active exercise programs for upper-limb training using Smovey had positive effects on muscle strength improvement of the upper and lower extremities in children, adolescents, and elderly adults [5,13,22]. Furthermore, since smooth shoulder movement is generated by muscle activity patterns and controlled by force applied with the integrated action of muscles surrounding the shoulder joint, small exercise equipment such as Smovey, dumbbell, kettlebell, and others have been used for muscle activity until recently [4,23,24].
Vibration stimulation transmitted to motor nerves when performing exercise increases excitatory activity by stimulating muscle spindle receptors [25], and vibration created while performing Smovey exercise strengthens the overall muscle activation of the upper limbs and trunk stability muscles by influencing agonist and synergist muscles [9]. In particular, Smovey exercise is thought to have positive effects on the muscle activities of the upper extremities in women by changing neuromuscular activation patterns.
This study was limited in certain aspects. This research had limited control over the various physical fitness levels of the subjects, and this could have affected interpretation of study results. Moreover, the present study had challenges in comparing the findings with the results of previous research because only a few studies have been performed on Smovey.
Further studies on Smovey are expected to be added with improved study design by considering physical strength levels of different age ranges. Through this process, the effect of Smovey exercise needs to be clarified and a concise reference base is needed. Therefore, the development of Smovey exercise that can be applied to different age groups is thought to be crucial, and standardized basic data on the muscle activity of the upper and lower limbs by age when performing shoulder joint exercise are needed.
Conclusions
The shoulder joint exercises using Smovey and dumbbells showed distinct effects on upper-limb muscle activation in women.
The vibratory stimulation of Smovey was found to have a more effective impact on improving coordination and stability, while dumbbells proved to be a suitable tool for strengthening the agonist muscles during specific movements. This study suggests that Smovey can serve as a safer and more controllable tool for resistance exercise and emphasizes the need for developing optimized Smovey exercise programs tailored to different ages and fitness levels.
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