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Related Experiment Videos

Muscular performance after concentric and eccentric exercise in trained men.

Harald Vikne1, Per E Refsnes, Merete Ekmark

  • 1Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, Oslo, Norway.

Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise
|October 5, 2006
PubMed
Summary

Eccentric resistance training significantly enhances muscle strength and size in trained men, while concentric training may rely more on neural adaptations for performance gains. Both methods improve velocity equally.

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Area of Science:

  • Exercise Physiology
  • Muscle Physiology
  • Sports Science

Background:

  • Understanding the specific adaptations to different resistance training modalities is crucial for optimizing performance.
  • Concentric and eccentric muscle actions elicit distinct physiological responses.
  • Previous research has not fully elucidated the differential effects on structural and functional parameters in resistance-trained individuals.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare the effects of 12 weeks of maximal concentric versus eccentric resistance training on performance and muscle structural parameters in resistance-trained men.
  • To investigate the impact of each training type on maximal strength, angular velocity, muscle cross-sectional area, and fiber-type proportions.

Main Methods:

  • Seventeen resistance-trained men were divided into two groups: maximal concentric training (N=8) and maximal eccentric training (N=9) for elbow flexors over 12 weeks.

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  • Performance was assessed via maximum concentric and eccentric strength and angular velocity at standard loads.
  • Muscle hypertrophy was measured by cross-sectional area (CSA) of the whole muscle and single fibers; fiber-type proportions were analyzed using myofibrillar ATPase staining.

    • Main Results:

    • Both training groups showed similar increases in concentric strength (14-18%).
    • Eccentric training yielded significantly greater increases in eccentric strength (26%) compared to concentric training (9%).
    • Eccentric training led to increases in elbow flexor CSA (+11%) and CSA of Type I and IIA fibers, along with a shift in relative Type II fiber area (64% to 73%).
    • Maximum angular velocity improved similarly in both groups.

    Conclusions:

    • Eccentric training promotes greater muscle hypertrophy and eccentric strength gains in resistance-trained men.
    • Concentric strength and velocity improvements may involve neural adaptations beyond muscular changes.
    • The findings suggest that eccentric training is superior for enhancing muscle size and strength, while concentric training's benefits might be partly neural.