Time course of neuromechanical and morphological adaptations to triceps surae isokinetic eccentric training

Triceps Surae Muscle Architecture Adaptations to Eccentric Training

“…However, findings on the effects of eccentric training on the triceps surae muscles are conflicting. While some studies show that eccentric training promotes an increase in FL, PA, and MT (Duclay et al, 2009; Geremia et al, 2018b), other studies did not find changes in these architectural outcomes (Raj et al, 2012; Fouré et al, 2013). In the majority of studies (Duclay et al, 2009; Raj et al, 2012), it was assumed that adaptations observed for the gastrocnemius medialis (GM) were representative of the entire triceps surae muscle group.…”

“…Structural changes accompanying (or due to) strength training provide insights into the muscle’s ability to accommodate architecture adaptations specific to the movement’s mechanical demands. Although traditional isoinertial resistance training is executed with a constant external load in the concentric and eccentric phases of movement (Walker et al, 2016), training programs often involve isometric contractions (Kitai and Sale, 1989; Oranchuk et al, 2019) or have an emphasis on the concentric (Blazevich et al, 2007; Timmins et al, 2016b) or eccentric (Baroni et al, 2013b; Geremia et al, 2018b) phases. Evidence suggests that training programs neglecting eccentric actions do not prepare subjects for the eccentric demands encountered in sports and activities of daily living (Barstow et al, 2003; LaStayo et al, 2003; Lovering and Brooks, 2014; Franchi et al, 2017).…”

“…Evidence suggests that training programs neglecting eccentric actions do not prepare subjects for the eccentric demands encountered in sports and activities of daily living (Barstow et al, 2003; LaStayo et al, 2003; Lovering and Brooks, 2014; Franchi et al, 2017). Therefore, strength training with an emphasis on eccentric movement execution has become popular for the purpose of injury prevention (LaStayo et al, 2003; Goode et al, 2015) and rehabilitation (Rees et al, 2008; Murtaugh and Ihm, 2013; Frizziero et al, 2014), as well as physical fitness improvement in healthy subjects (Baroni et al, 2013c; Geremia et al, 2018a, b).…”

“…Most of these studies reported an increase in FL (Blazevich and Sharp, 2005; Blazevich et al, 2007; Baroni et al, 2013b), while results on changes in PA were mixed (Blazevich et al, 2007; Reeves et al, 2009; Raj et al, 2012; Baroni et al, 2013b). Eccentric training has been found to produce significant changes in muscle architecture after training periods as short as 4 weeks (Baroni et al, 2013b, c; Geremia et al, 2018b). However, different muscle groups (Mulder et al, 2009) or even muscles within the same functional group (Butterfield et al, 2005), may adapt differently when exposed to the same eccentric training stimulus.…”

“…Eccentric training programs for the triceps surae muscle have been widely used in tendon injury rehabilitation (Alfredson et al, 1998; Kingma et al, 2007; Woodley et al, 2007), as well as to improve performance in healthy subjects (Geremia et al, 2018a, b). However, findings on the effects of eccentric training on the triceps surae muscles are conflicting.…”