Effect of Clubbell Exercises on Shoulder Kinematics in Female Handball Players

Background: Clubbells were popular shoulder exercise equipment used during the 17-18th centuries. Currently there is a resurgence in the use of clubbells to strengthen the shoulder rotators, but there are no studies to prove their effectiveness on shoulder kinematics. Therefore, this study aimed to find out if clubbell exercises had any effect on glenohumeral rotational range of motion (ROM) and shoulder rotator strength. Methods: Using a randomised control study design, female handball athletes (n=15) were voluntarily recruited and were assigned randomly to either a handball training only group (HT) (n = 8, age 25±7 y, height 1.77 ± 0.11m, mass 76 ± 15 kg,) or a shoulder exercise group (SE) (n = 7, age 27±8 y, height 1.78 ± 0.12m, mass 79 ± 15 kg). The SE group underwent an exercise programme (8 weeks, 3 days/week, 20 min/day) using clubbells. The ROM and muscle strength were assessed at baseline and at the end of weeks 2, 4, 6 and 8. Results: After eight weeks, comparison between groups showed that the SE group’s dominant arm internal rotators muscle strength improved (28±5 to 33±7 Nm) significantly (p0.05). Within the SE group, internal rotation ROM, internal rotators, and external rotators muscle strength all significantly (p0.05) improved. Conclusions: Clubbell exercises increases internal rotation ROM and shoulder rotators muscle strength. Therefore, it is suggested that handball athletes could use clubbell exercises to improve their shoulder rotational ROM and strengthen the shoulder rotators whereby reducing shoulder injury risk.