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Published on: January 29, 2016
A Comparison of Increases in Volume Load Over 8 Weeks of Low-Versus High-Load Resistance Training
Brad J Schoenfeld1, Dan Ogborn2, Bret Contreras3
1Department of Health Sciences, CUNY Lehman College, Bronx, USA.
Background:
It has been hypothesized that the ability to increase volume load (VL) via a progressive increase in the magnitude of load for a given exercise within a given repetition range could enhance the adaptive response to resistance training.
Objectives:
The purpose of this study was to compare changes in volume load (VL) over eight weeks of resistance training (RT) in high-versus low-load protocols.
Materials And Methods:
Eighteen well-trained men were matched according to baseline strength were randomly assigned to either a low-load RT (LOW, n = 9) where 25 - 35 repetitions were performed per exercise, or a high-load RT (HIGH, n = 9) where 8 - 12 repetitions were performed per exercise. Both groups performed three sets of seven exercises for all major muscles three times per week on non-consecutive days.
Results:
After adjusting for the pre-test scores, there was a significant difference between the two intervention groups on post-intervention total VL with a very large effect size (F (1, 15) = 16.598, P = .001, ηp(2) = .525). There was a significant relationship between pre-intervention and post-intervention total VL (F (1, 15) = 32.048, P < .0001, ηp(2) = .681) in which the pre-test scores explained 68% of the variance in the post-test scores.
Conclusions:
This study indicates that low-load RT results in greater accumulations in VL compared to high-load RT over the course of 8 weeks of training.
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