The aim of this study was to assess effects of a short-term resistance program on strength in fit young women using weight machines/free weights or elastic tubing. 42 physically fit women (21.79±0.7 years) were randomly assigned to the following groups: (i) the Thera-Band (®) Exercise Station Group (TBG); (ii) the weight machines/free weights group (MFWG); or (iii) the control group (CG). Each experimental group performed the same periodised training program that lasted for 8 weeks, with 2-4 sessions per week and 3-4 sets of 8-15 submaximal reps. A load cell (Isocontrol; ATEmicro, Madrid, Spain) was used to test the evolution of the Maximum Isometric Voluntary Contraction (MIVC) in 3 different exercises: Vertical Rowing (VR), Squat (S) and Back Extension (BE). A mixed model MANOVA [group (CG, TBG, MFWG) x testing time (pre-test, post-test)] was applied to determine the effect of the different resistance training devices on strength. The only groups to improve their MIVC (p<0.005) were TBG and MFWG, respectively: VR 19.87% and 19.76%; S 14.07 and 28.88; BE 14.41% and 14.00%. These results indicate that resistance training using elastic tubing or weight machines/free weights have equivalent improvements in isometric force in short-term programs applied in fit young women.

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Background: Down syndrome (DS) is a genetic disorder that occurs because of an abnormal division between cells that results in an extra copy of chromosome 21. Some studies show that physical exercise in people with DS increases some cognitive capacities, such as memory, and improves the quality of life. Aim: The main aim of this study was to perform an analysis of the reliability and feasibility of the SAMU-Disability Fitness (DISFIT) battery in adults with DS. Methods: A cross-sectional study with a test–retest design was performed in a maximum interval of 2 weeks in 37 subjects (11 women and 26 men) aged between 21 and 58 years old with DS. Eight field-based fitness tests were proposed to assess the physical fitness (PF) of adults with DS: Body Mass Index (BMI), Waist Circumference (WC), the Timed Up and Go test (TUG), the Deep Trunk Flexibility test (DTF), the Hand Grip test (HG), the Timed Stand Test (TST), the 30-s Sit-Up (SUP) and the 6-Min Walk Test (6MWT). Results: The intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) in all the tests was good and high (>0.80), except for the 6MWT, whose reliability was fair. Conclusion: The SAMU-DISFIT battery is a reliable and feasible physical fitness battery which has been created with the purpose of establishing tests which measure the four basic components of PF (flexibility, cardiorespiratory fitness, musculoskeletal fitness and motor fitness) in adults with DS.

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