Meta-analysis of the intermittent time of post-activation potentiation enhancement on sprint ability

In sports, 10 m, 30 m and 40m events are used to test the athlete's acceleration ability, which depends on the coordination of physiological and neural function and can be greatly improved through scientific training.

This study conducted a systematic meta-analysis on the intermittent time of post-activation potentiation enhancement (PAPE) and the outcome measure was the sprint ability in 10 m and 30 m events. Data Sources : Web of Science, PubMed, ProQuest, Embase, Science Direct, Google Scholar, WanFang Data and CNKI. Study eligibility criteria : to qualify for inclusion in meta-analysis, the study must be: 1) healthy people (athletes, students); 2) randomized controlled trials; 3) Barbell squat was used to induce PAPE; 4) intervention period of at least 6 weeks; and 5) an outcome indicator of sprinting ability.

We used the inverse-variance random-effects model for meta-analyses. Effect sizes (standardized mean difference), calculated from measures of horizontally orientated performance, were represented by the standardized mean difference and presented alongside 95% confidence intervals (CI). A total of 9 studies including 141 participants, met the inclusion criteria. The sprint ability in 10 meters (ES=-0.03, P<0.0001) and 30 meters events (ES=-0.03, P=0.004) could be significantly improved when the intermittent time of PAPE was 4-8 min. When the intensity of the squat load was 85%1RM~100%1RM, compared with the intermittent time of 0-3min, 9-12min, and more than 13min, the sprint ability in 10 meters (ES=-0.04, P<0.0001) and 30 meters events (ES=-0.08, P=0.0001) was incredibly enhanced if the intermittent time was 4-8 minutes. Compared with college students, the sprint ability in 10-meter (ES=-0.03, P<0.0001) and 30-meter (ES=-0.04, P=0.001) events was significantly improved in athletes when the intermittent time of PAPE was 4-8 minutes. Compared with non-ball games, the sprint ability in 10 meters (ES=-0.04, P<0.0001) and 30 meters (ES=-0.09, P=0.0002) in ball games was significantly improved when the intermittent time of PAPE was 4-8 minutes.

Our meta-analysis indicated that when squats were used as the induction and the load intensity was 85% 1RM~100% 1RM, the sprint ability in 10-meter and 30-meter events could be significantly improved if the intermittent time was 4-8min. According to the analysis on different population, compared with college students and non-ball games, the 10-meter and 30-meter the sprint ability were significantly improved in athletes and ball games when the intermittent time was 4-8 minutes. Therefore, future research should focus on developing a reasonable combination of load stimulation and intermittent time according to the sprint ability to better induce PAPE.