Morphological analysis of force/velocity relationship in dynamic exercise at varying loads

This study examined the force/velocity (F/V) curve morphology among the entire concentric phase of the countermovement squat (CMS). The hypothesis is that F/V curve shape of the lower limb muscles complex is different from F/V isolated muscle curve and that these analyses could be useful in characterizing athletes' muscular capacity and training programs. Squat exercise was performed by 29 subjects (15 men and 14 women, divided into resistance and endurance athletes). The protocol was 6 x 1 CMS at maximal speed with increasing loads: 20, 35, 50, 65, 80, 90% of 1 repetition maximum (1RM). Displacement, speed, and acceleration of the weight bar, joint knee angles, knee angular speed, and total and normalized forces were collected. F/V relation was obtained by force and velocity values of each 10 degrees angular interval of the concentric phase for any load. Results show that the F/V relationship does not follow a linear shape and an equivalent criterion for all loads. We observed a "second peak force" statistically higher (p < 0.05) than the inversion peak at 80 and 90% 1RM. Resistance trained men showed a "second peak" higher and larger than that shown by endurance trained men. This indicated a higher ability to produce and maintain greater force at higher relative speed. These results may be helpful to identify the muscle characteristics of the athletes at various speeds and joint positions. With a phase division of the specific move, it will be possible to determine an individualized program to monitor the specific phases of technical moves and to evaluate the training effect in long run.