CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Sports Med Int Open 2018; 02(06): E185-E190
DOI: 10.1055/a-0770-4699
Training & Testing
Eigentümer und Copyright ©Georg Thieme Verlag KG 2018

Unilateral Conditioning Contractions Enhance Power Output in Elite Short Track Speed Skaters

Philippe Gimenez
1   Laboratoire C3S (EA 4660), Université de Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Besançon, France
2   École de kinésiologie et des sciences de l'activité physique, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada
,
Evelyne Chicoine
2   École de kinésiologie et des sciences de l'activité physique, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada
,
David Amarantini
3   ToNIC, Toulouse NeuroImaging Center, Université de Toulouse, Inserm, UPS, France
,
Fabien Dal Maso
4   École de kinésiologie et des sciences de l'activité physique, laboratoire de simulation et modélisation du mouvement, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada
,
Jonathan Tremblay
2   École de kinésiologie et des sciences de l'activité physique, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada
5   Institut National du Sport du Québec, Montréal, Canada
› Author Affiliations
Further Information

Publication History

received  18 January 2018
revised  16 October 2018

accepted  19 October 2018

Publication Date:
15 November 2018 (online)

Abstract

The objective of the present study was to assess the effect of unilateral lower-body-conditioning muscle contractions during multiple sets of fatiguing repeated jumps in elite athletes. Five elite short-track speed-skating athletes performed 9 sets of 6 maximal consecutive jumps on 2 separate occasions: with (COND) and without (CTRL) preliminary voluntary conditioning contractions (CC) 5 min before the beginning of the sets. The CC consisted of 2 consecutive 3 s maximal unilateral isometric squats against a fixed bar, resulting in a 6 s overall isometric contraction per leg. For each set, power output (PO) was measured using a linear position transducer and averaged over the 6 corresponding repeated jumps. The results showed that PO was significantly greater during the test in COND than in CTRL (p<0.01). PO significantly decreased with sets, by 19.4±4.7  and 15.2±7.6% (p<0.001) between the first and last set in COND and CTRL, respectively. A 2×3 s maximal unilateral isometric CC, performed 5 min before unloaded repeated jumps, significantly increased mean PO. These results suggest that unilateral conditioning contractions can enhance performance in subsequent bilateral repeated jumps.

 
  • References

  • 1 Barelle C, Ruby A, Tavernier M. Original research experimental model of the aerodynamic drag coefficient in Alpine skiing. J Appl Biomech 2004; 20: 167-176
  • 2 Bates D, Maechler M, Bolker B, Walker S. lme4: Linear mixed-effects models using eigen and S4. R package version 1.1-7 http://CRAN.Rproject.org/package = lme4 R Packag version 2014
  • 3 Bobbert MF, de Graaf WW, Jonk JN, Casius LJR. Explanation of the bilateral deficit in human vertical squat jumping. J Appl Physiol 2006; 100: 493-499
  • 4 Bogdanis GC, Tsoukos A, Veligekas P, Tsolakis C, Terzis G. Effects of muscle action type with equal impulse of conditioning activity on post activation potentiation. J Strength Cond Res 2014; 1-31
  • 5 Boudreau SN, Dwyer MK, Mattacola CG, Lattermann C, Uhl TL, McKeon JM. Hip-muscle activation during the lunge, single-leg squat, and step-up-and-over exercises. J Sport Rehabil 2009; 18: 91-103
  • 6 Chiu LZF, Fry AC, Weiss LW, Schilling BK, Brown LE, Smith SL. Postactivation potentiation response in athletic and recreationally trained individuals. J Strength Cond Res 2003; 17: 671-677
  • 7 Crow JF, Buttifant D, Kearny SG, Hrysomallis C. Low load exercises targeting the gluteal muscle group acutely enhance explosive power output in elite athletes. J Strength Cond Res 2012; 26: 438-442
  • 8 Docherty D, Hodgson MJ. The application of postactivation potentiation to elite sport. Int J Sports Physiol Perform 2007; 2: 439-444
  • 9 Duthie GM, Young WB, Aitken DA. The acute effects of heavy loads on jump squat performance: An evaluation of the complex and contrast methods of power development. J Strength Cond Res 2002; 16: 530-538
  • 10 Esformes J, Bampouras T. Effects of back squat depth on lower-body postactivation potentiation. J Strength Cond Res 2013; 27: 2997-3000
  • 11 Felser S, Behrens M, Fischer S, Heise S, Bäumler M, Salomon R, Bruhn S. Relationship between strength qualities and short track speed skating performance in young athletes. Scand J Med Sci Sports 2016; 26: 165-171
  • 12 French DN, Kraemer WJ, Cooke CB. Changes in dynamic exercise performance following a sequence of preconditioning isometric muscle actions. J Strength Cond Res 2003; 17: 678-685
  • 13 Fukutani A, Takei S, Hirata K, Miyamoto N, Kanehisa H, Kawakami Y. Influence of the intensity of squat exercises on the subsequent jump performance. J Strength Cond Res 2014; 28: 2236-2243
  • 14 Garnacho-Castaño MV, López-Lastra S, Maté-Muñoz JL. Reliability and validity assessment of a linear position transducer. J Sport Sci Med 2014; 14: 128-136
  • 15 Gossen ER, Sale DG. Effect of postactivation potentiation on dynamic knee extension performance. Eur J Appl Physiol 2000; 83: 524-530
  • 16 Hamada T, Sale DG, MacDougall JD, Tarnopolsky MA. Postactivation potentiation, fiber type, and twitch contraction time in human knee extensor muscles. J Appl Physiol 2000; 88: 2131-2137
  • 17 Harriss D, Macsween A, Atkinson G. Standards for ethics in sport and exercise science research: 2018 update. Int J Sports Med 2017; 38: 1126-1131
  • 18 Haug WB, Drinkwater EJ, Mitchell LJ, Chapman DW. The relationship between start performance and race outcome in elite 500-m short-track speed skating. Int J Sports Physiol Perform 2015; 10: 902-906
  • 19 Haug W, Spratford W, Williams K, Chapman D, Drinkwater E. Differences in end range of motion vertical jump kinetic and kinematic strategies between trained weightlifters and elite short track speed skaters. J Strength Cond Res 2015; 29: 2488-2496
  • 20 Hesford CM, Laing S, Cooper CE. Using portable NIRS to compare arm and leg muscle oxygenation during roller skiing in biathletes: A case study. Adv Exp Med Biol 2013; 789: 179-184
  • 21 Hesford CM, Laing SJ, Cardinale M, Cooper CE. Asymmetry of quadriceps muscle oxygenation during elite short-track speed skating. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2012; 44: 501-508
  • 22 Hodgson M, Docherty D, Robbins D. Post-activation potentiation: Underlying physiology and implications for motor performance. Sport Med 2005; 35: 585-595
  • 23 Jensen AM. The use of neuro emotional technique with competitive rowers: A case series. J Chiropr Med 2011; 10: 111-117
  • 24 Kilduff LP, Owen N, Bevan H, Bennett M, Kingsley MIC, Cunningham D. Influence of recovery time on post-activation potentiation in professional rugby players. J Sport Sci 2008; 26: 795-802
  • 25 Krause DA, Jacobs RS, Pilger KE, Sather BR, Sibunka SP, Hollman JH. Electromyographic analysis of the gluteus medius in five weight-bearing exercises. J Strength Cond Res 2009; 23: 2689
  • 26 Mangus BC, Takahashi M, Mercer JA, Holcomb WR, McWhorter JW, Sanchez R. Investigation of vertical jump performance after completing heavy squat exercises. J Strength Cond Res 2006; 20: 597-600
  • 27 Miyamoto N, Kanehisa H, Kawakami Y. Potentiation of maximal voluntary concentric torque in human quadriceps femoris. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2012; 44: 1738-1746
  • 28 Morin JB, Samozino P. Interpreting power-force-velocity profiles for individualized and specific training. Int J Sports Physiol Perform 2016; 11: 267-272
  • 29 Perdices M. Null hypothesis significance testing, p-values, effects sizes and confidence intervals. Brain Impair 2018; 19: 70-80
  • 30 Pinheiro J, Bates D, DebRoy S, Sarkar D.Team RC. nlme: Linear and Nonlinear Mixed Effects Models. R Packag version 3, 1–118, 2014
  • 31 Rassier DE, MacIntosh BR. Coexistence of potentiation and fatigue in skeletal muscle. Brazilian J Med Biol Res 2000; 33: 499-508
  • 32 Rejc E, Lazzer S, Antonutto G, Isola M, Di Prampero PE. Bilateral deficit and EMG activity during explosive lower limb contractions against different overloads. Eur J Appl Physiol 2010; 108: 157-165
  • 33 Rixon KP, Lamont HS, Bemben MG. Influence of type of muscle contraction, gender, and lifting experience on postactivation potentiation performance. J Strength Cond Res 2007; 21: 500-505
  • 34 Robbins DW. Postactivation potentiation and its practical applicability: A brief review. J Strength Cond Res 2005; 19: 453-458
  • 35 Sale DG. Postactivation potentiation: Role in human performance. Exerc Sport Sci Rev 2002; 30: 138-143
  • 36 Samozino P, Rabita G, Dorel S, Slawinski J, Peyrot N, Saez de Villarreal E, Morin JB. A simple method for measuring power, force, velocity properties, and mechanical effectiveness in sprint running. Scand J Med Sci Sport 2016; 26: 648-658
  • 37 Seitz LB, de Villarreal ES, Haff GG. The temporal profile of postactivation potentiation is related to strength level. J Strength Cond Res 2014; 28: 706-715
  • 38 Tillin NA, Bishop D. Factors modulating post-activation potentiation and its effect on performance of subsequent explosive activities. Sport Med 2009; 39: 147-166
  • 39 Vandervoort AA, Sale DG, Moroz J. Comparison of motor unit activation during unilateral and bilateral leg extension. J Appl Physiol 1984; 56: 46-51
  • 40 Weber KR, Brown LE, Coburn JW, Zinder SM. Acute effects of heavy-load squats on consecutive squat jump performance. J Strength Cond Res 2008; 22: 726-730
  • 41 Young W. Acute enhancement of power performance from heavy load squats. J strength Cond Res 1998; 12: 82-84