Alterations in bilateral force judgment following strenuous eccentric exercise

This study investigated the effects of strenuous eccentric exercise on bilateral force-matching ability. After unilaterally performing 50 maximal eccentric elbow actions, participants were evaluated for bilateral force-matching ability. Participants were asked to match a reference force held by the control (CNT) arm with their exercised (EXD) arm. The experimental condition was then reversed. Constant error (bias) of the EXD arm was increased through 5 days postexercise, when it underestimated the CNT force in all trials. In contrast, an overestimation of the EXD force by the CNT arm resulted in an increased constant and variable error (variability around the bias) through 5 days postexercise, when the EXD arm served as the force reference. Strenuous eccentric exercise severely compromises bilateral force-matching ability, regardless of whether the EXD attempted to match the reference force or served as the force reference, indicating central or peripheral alterations to force judgment.