The stretch-shortening cycle is one of the most interesting topics in the field of sport sciences, because the performance of human movement is enhanced by the stretch-shortening cycle (eccentric contraction). The purpose of the present study was to examine whether the influence of preactivation on the torque enhancement by stretch-shortening cycle in knee extensors. Twelve men participated in ...

BACKGROUND Data obtained on an isokinetic dynamometer are useful to characterize muscle status and have been reported in muscle imbalance studies in different types of sport. However, few studies have assessed elite handball players to establish reference values. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to compare, for the dominant (D) and non-dominant (ND) side, the isokinetic profile of shou...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Despite the belief that after cerebral infarction only limited functional gains are possible beyond the subacute period, we tested the hypothesis that a 12-week program of "task-oriented" treadmill exercise would increase muscle strength and decrease spastic reflexes in chronic hemiparetic patients. METHODS Fourteen subjects, aged 66+/-3 (mean+/-SEM) years, with residua...

The influence of cutaneous and joint receptors on the quadriceps femoris torque-velocity relationship was assessed with the Kin-Com (Chattecx, Inc., Hixson, TN) isokinetic dynamometer. Twenty-four females (age = 21 ± 1.4 years, ht = 163 + 6.0 cm, wt = 60 ± 7.6 kg) were divided into two groups and tested with the force pad placed either proximally or distally on the leg. Three concentric and ecc...

OBJECTIVES To investigate the effect of Kinesio Taping (KT) applied over the biceps brachii on maximal isokinetic elbow torque. DESIGN This study followed a single-blinded, placebo controlled, repeated measures design. METHODS Isokinetic eccentric and concentric elbow peak torques were evaluated without taping (NT), with KT or placebo taping (PT) in 20 healthy participants. Furthermore, all...

The influence of contraction type on the human ability to use the torque capacity of skeletal muscle during explosive efforts has not been documented. Fourteen male participants completed explosive voluntary contractions of the knee extensors in four separate conditions: concentric (CON) and eccentric (ECC); and isometric at two knee angles (101°, ISO101 and 155°, ISO155). In each condition, to...

BACKGROUND Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic-degenerative disease. The knee is the most commonly affected joint and the symptoms are generally attributed to quadriceps muscle weakness. However, few studies have evaluated this relationship in a population with early stages of knee OA. OBJECTIVE To investigate whether a correlation among the knee extensor torque and the three subscales of the WO...

The aim of this paper was to outline a multilevel modeling approach to fit individual angle-specific torque curves describing concentric knee extension and flexion isokinetic muscular actions in Master athletes. The potential of the analytical approach to examine between individual differences across the angle-specific torque curves was illustrated including between-individuals variation due to...

OBJECTIVE To analyze concentric and eccentric strength and endurance in patients with unilateral intermittent claudication. INTRODUCTION Basic motor tasks are composed of concentric, isometric, and eccentric actions, which are related and contribute to physical performance. In previous studies of patients with intermittent claudication, the disease-related reduction in concentric and isometri...