The effect of isometric exercise upon the strength of antagonistic muscles

Rasch, Philip J.; Pierson, William R.; Logan, Gene A.

doi:10.1007/bf00693624

Cited by 8 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 9 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In contrast to the above reports, a few authors have found no evidence of specificity. Rasch, Pierson & Logan (1961) trained the elbow flexors isometrically at 90 deg, and found significant and equal strength increases at.joint angles ranging from 45 to 135 deg. A later study by Rasch & Pierson (1964) confirmed the earlier observations.…”

Section: Task Specificitymentioning

confidence: 96%

Physiological Changes in Skeletal Muscle as a Result of Strength Training

1989

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The picture of training that emerges is of a process that can be divided into a number of phases. In the first phase there is a rapid improvement in the ability to perform the training exercise such as lifting weights which is the result of a learning process in which the correct sequence of muscle contractions is laid down as a motor pattern in the central nervous system. This phase is associated with little or no increase in the size or strength of individual muscles. The learning process appears to be very specific in that lifting weights makes better weight lifters but not better sprinters. The second phase is an increase in the strength of individual muscles which occurs without a matching increase in the anatomical cross‐section. The mechanism for this is not clear but could be a result of increased neural activation or some change in the fibre arrangement or connective tissue content. The third phase starts at a point where scientific studies usually end, at about 12 weeks when non‐athletic subjects are beginning to tire of the repeated training and testing. After this point, if training continues, there is probably a slow but steady increase in both size and strength of the exercised muscles. The stimulus for these changes remains enigmatic but almost certainly involves high forces in the muscle, probably to induce some form of damage that promotes division of satellite cells and their incorporation into existing muscle fibres. Our information on the effect of long‐term training comes primarily from observations on elite athletes whose physique may well be the result of genetic endowment or the use or abuse of drugs. For the athlete or patient hoping to increase muscle size by weight training the best combination of intensity, frequency and type of exercise still remains a matter of individual choice rather than a scientific certainty.

show abstract

Section: Task Specificitymentioning

confidence: 96%

Physiological Changes in Skeletal Muscle as a Result of Strength Training

1989

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…and Barak et al ., respectively, examined the effect of isotonic and isokinetic high‐load training of knee extension, and reported that the improvement in maximum isometric strength occurred at the training angle. On the other hand, some reports have demonstrated that an improvement in maximum muscle strength can be obtained over a wide range of joint angles around the training angle during isometric training or eccentric isokinetic training . Thus, because a consensus view regarding joint angle specificity has yet to be achieved, further research and investigation are required.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Improvement in muscle strength with low‐load isotonic training depends on fascicle length but not joint angle

et al. 2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Introduction: In this study we investigate whether low-load isotonic training will elicit greater improvement in muscle strength at the same fascicle length, rather than at the same joint angle. Methods: Sixteen healthy men (24.1 6 2.5 years of age) were randomly divided into intervention and control groups. Pre-and posttraining maximum isometric and isokinetic strengths and fascicle lengths of the medial gastrocnemius muscle were measured. Isotonic resistance training at 15 8 to 30 8 ankle plantarflexion at low intensity was conducted for 4 weeks. Results: The maximum isometric and isokinetic strength of the intervention group increased significantly only at 15 8 dorsiflexion and 8 8 to 12 8 dorsiflexion. Fascicle length during maximum voluntary contraction at 15 8 dorsiflexion to 0 8 was similar to fascicle length under training conditions. Discussion: It is possible that the improvement in muscle strength with low-load training depends on fascicle length rather than joint angle. 57: 83-89, 2018 Muscle strength is known to specifically improve at the applied angle of training. In isometric training, Kitai and Sale 1 reported that ankle plantarflexion training using maximum voluntary isometric contraction at an ankle angle of 0 8 (i.e., 90 8 angle between the tibia and the sole of the foot) produces an improvement in maximum isometric strength at an ankle position of only around 0 8 (between -5 8 and 5 8). These results demonstrate the so-called joint angle specificity on training effect. Muscle Nerve1 Moreover, it was reported that muscle strength specifically improves at the training angle used during not only isometric training but also isotonic and isokinetic training. Graves et al.2 and Barak et al., 3 respectively, examined the effect of isotonic and isokinetic high-load training of knee extension, and reported that the improvement in maximum isometric strength occurred at the training angle. On the other hand, some reports have demonstrated that an improvement in maximum muscle strength can be obtained over a wide range of joint angles around the training angle during isometric training 4-7 or eccentric isokinetic training.3 Thus, because a consensus view regarding joint angle specificity has yet to be achieved, further research and investigation are required.In general, it has been stated that a high load of more than 60% of maximum voluntary contraction is needed to gain an improvement in strength during resistance training.8 Therefore, all previous studies investigating the joint angle specificity of the training effect used a high load of more than 70% maximum voluntary isometric contraction or 60% 1 repetition maximum (1RM). However, our recent study 9 showed that isometric training with a low-intensity 30% maximum voluntary contraction was effective for improving the muscle strength at a different joint angle from the training angle. Our findings suggest that the effects of lowintensity training depend on not the joint angle specificity but rather on the fascicle length. The fascicle l...

show abstract

“…In many studies, it has been reported that an increase in maximum strength after a training period could often only be determined for conditions that corresponded to those of the training. Several researchers have reported that there are specific adaptations that occur at the joint angles selected during training [214,[224][225][226][227], movement speeds [210,[228][229][230][231][232][233][234][235][236] and types of contraction [201,208,210,212,234,[237][238][239][240][241][242][243][244][245][246]. These results are supported by numerous EMG findings [235,238,242,[247][248][249][250][251][252][253][254][255][256][257].…”

Section: Cross-sectional and Longitudinal Studies On Strength Trainin...mentioning

confidence: 68%

Strength Training in Swimming

Wirth

Keiner

Fuhrmann³

et al. 2022

IJERPH

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This narrative review deals with the topic of strength training in swimming, which has been a controversial issue for decades. It is not only about the importance for the performance at start, turn and swim speed, but also about the question of how to design a strength training program. Different approaches are discussed in the literature, with two aspects in the foreground. On the one hand is the discussion about the optimal intensity in strength training and, on the other hand, is the question of how specific strength training should be designed. In addition to a summary of the current state of research regarding the importance of strength training for swimming, the article shows which physiological adaptations should be achieved in order to be able to increase performance in the long term. Furthermore, an attempt is made to explain why some training contents seem to be rather unsuitable when it comes to increasing strength as a basis for higher performance in the start, turn and clean swimming. Practical training consequences are then derived from this. Regardless of the athlete’s performance development, preventive aspects should also be considered in the discussion. The article provides a critical overview of the abovementioned key issues. The most important points when designing a strength training program for swimming are a sufficiently high-load intensity to increase maximum strength, which in turn is the basis for power, year-round strength training, parallel to swim training and working on the transfer of acquired strength skills in swim training, and not through supposedly specific strength training exercises on land or in the water.

show abstract

The effect of isometric exercise upon the strength of antagonistic muscles

Cited by 8 publications

References 9 publications

Physiological Changes in Skeletal Muscle as a Result of Strength Training

Physiological Changes in Skeletal Muscle as a Result of Strength Training

Improvement in muscle strength with low‐load isotonic training depends on fascicle length but not joint angle

Strength Training in Swimming

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About