The impact of resistance exercise range of motion on the magnitude of upper-body post-activation performance enhancement

Abstract

Background Various studies have used different exercise protocols as post-activation performance enhancement (PAPE) stimulus; however, little attention has been given to the effects of exercise range of motion on the PAPE effect and subsequent performance enhancement. This study aimed to compare the PAPE responses induced by the bench press performed with different ranges of motion on subsequent bench press throw performance. Methods Ten resistance-trained males (age: 26 ± 3 years; body mass: 93.2 ± 9.4 kg; height: 181 ± 6 cm; experience in resistance training: 6.3 ± 2.4 years; relative bench press one-repetition maximum (1RM) 1.54 ± 0.2 kg/body mass) performed four experimental sessions consisting of a single set of the bench press at 80%1RM until mean barbell velocity dropped by 10% as the conditioning activity (CA) with a (1) standard, (2) cambered, (3) and reversed cambered barbell or a control condition in which the participants did not perform any CA. To assess the PAPE effect, single-sets of 2 repetitions of the bench press throw at 30%1RM were performed before and after the CA at the following time points: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 min. Results The two-way ANOVA (4 conditions × 2time points) showed a significant interaction for peak power (p < 0.001; η2 = 0.556) and peak velocity (p = 0.001; η2 = 0.457). The standard barbell bench press CA led to the greatest performance enhancement in peak power (p = 0.001; ES = 0.54) and in peak velocity (p = 0.002; ES = 0.71) within the examined conditions. Conclusions The results of this study indicate that the range of motion of the CA has a significant impact on the magnitude of the PAPE response, and the greatest effect can be reached when the range of motion of the CA and the subsequent explosive task is similar.

Acute effects of combined isometric and plyometric conditioning activities on sports performance and tendon stiffness in female volleyball players

“…Nevertheless, the COD test used in this study consists mainly of lateral movements; thus, the UNI-CA used could not reflect the involvement of the same muscle groups. The importance of exercise similarity has been pointed out in previous studies ( Dello Iacono et al, 2016 ; Krzysztofik et al, 2022 ). For example, Krzysztofik et al (2022) showed that the CA and subsequent explosive task should be as similar as possible regarding the range of motion to maximize the PAPE effect.…”

“…The importance of exercise similarity has been pointed out in previous studies (Dello Iacono et al, 2016;Krzysztofik et al, 2022). For example, Krzysztofik et al (2022) showed that the CA and subsequent explosive task should be as similar as possible regarding the range of motion to maximize the PAPE effect.…”

“…The importance of exercise similarity has been pointed out in previous studies (Dello Iacono et al, 2016;Krzysztofik et al, 2022). For example, Krzysztofik et al (2022) showed that the CA and subsequent explosive task should be as similar as possible regarding the range of motion to maximize the PAPE effect. In another study, Dello Iacono et al ( 2016) compared the effects of alternating single-leg drop jumps performed horizontally and vertically (3 × 5 each leg, from a 25 cm height) as a CA on CMJ, 10 m sprint, and t-agility test performed 8 min later.…”

“…Two crucial factors should be considered to maximize the PAPE effect: an optimal balance between fatigue and potentiation; and similarity in terms of movement pattern between the CA and subsequent performance. Therefore, the CA should induce a high level of potentiation and a low level of fatigue and, simultaneously, imitate the following explosive task in terms of movement structure and the range of motion ( Dello Iacono et al, 2016 ; Krzysztofik et al, 2022 ). When considering the meaning of fatigue in successfully inducing the PAPE effect, it could be useful to monitor its kinetics following the CA.…”

Special and preventive exercises for hamstring muscles in the training process of experienced football players

“…The redistribution of bioelectrical activity of HM depending upon rotation of the lower leg, which we revealed, will optimize components for carrying out muscular-fascial testing. This will also make it possible to qualitatively regulate conditions of a local physical effect on the area of contraction in functional imbalance [30,31].…”