Mixed Session Periodization as a New Approach for Strength, Power, Functional Performance, and Body Composition...

Berzerra, ES, Orssatto, LBR, Moura, BM, Willardson, JM, Simão, R, and Moro, ARP. Mixed session periodization as a new approach for strength, power, functional performance, and body composition enhancement in aging adults. J Strength Cond Res 32(10): 2795-2806, 2018-The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of mixed session periodization (MSP) vs. traditional periodization (TP) on strength, power, functional performance, and body composition in aging adults. Forty-five healthy aging adults were randomly divided into 3 groups: MSP, TP, and Control. Subjects were tested before the intervention for baseline values (week 4) and then repeated testing during (week 7 and week 11), as well as after the intervention (week 15). Subjects were tested on the following performance measures: 5 repetition maximum (5RM) leg press and seated leg curl; 12RM cable chest press; countermovement jump (CMJ) and squat jump; up-and-down stairs; timed up and go (TUG); and body composition. All comparisons were analyzed through a mixed-model analysis with repeated measures (group × time) and with Bonferroni post hoc tests (p ≤ 0.05). After the intervention, no significant differences were observed between experimental groups; however, the MSP and TP groups demonstrated significantly greater values vs. the Control group in the 5RM leg press (p < 0.01), seated leg curl (p < 0.01), and 12RM cable chest press (p < 0.001). For CMJ performance, the MSP and TP groups significantly increased at week 7 (p < 0.001). The MSP and TP groups significantly improved functional task performance, including TUG (p < 0.001), upstairs (p < 0.01), and downstairs (p < 0.01) after training. Furthermore, body composition for the lower limbs significantly changed for the MSP and TP groups, with increased fat-free mass (p < 0.001) and decreased fat mass (p < 0.01) after training. In conclusion, the MSP and TP models used in this study were equally effective in developing strength, power, and functional performance while increasing fat-free mass and improving body fat percentage in aging adults. However, it should be considered that the MSP protocol did result in greater effect sizes in lower-limb strength, lower-limb fat-free mass, up-and-down stair, and TUG performance.