The present study aimed to investigate the effects of repetitive muscle contractions on the elasticity of human tendon structures in vivo. Before and after each endurance test, the elongation of the tendon and aponeurosis of vastus lateralis muscle (L) was directly measured by ultrasonography while the subjects performed ramp isometric knee extension up to maximal voluntary isometric contractio...

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of endurance training on skeletal muscle hemodynamics and oxygen consumption. Seven healthy endurance-trained and seven untrained subjects were studied. Oxygen uptake, blood flow, and blood volume were measured in the quadriceps femoris muscle group by use of positron emission tomography and [15O]O2, [15O]H2O, and [15O]CO during rest and one-...

BACKGROUND A reduction in expiratory muscle (ExM) endurance in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) may have clinically relevant implications. This study was carried out to evaluate ExM endurance in patients with COPD. METHODS Twenty three patients with COPD (FEV(1) 35 (14)% predicted) and 14 matched controls were studied. ExM endurance was assessed using a method based ...

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS The aim of this study was to examine the sit up test to exhaustion as a field test for muscular endurance evaluation in a sample of sedentary people of both sexes. METHODS A cross-sectional study was performed. Three-hundred-eighty-one participants volunteered for the study (28.5 ± 10.0 years; 168.2 ± 8.9 cm; 65.1 ± 11.1 kg), of which 194 males (27.5 ± 10.2 years; 173.6 ± 7.0 ...

In human muscle the role of myoglobin (Mb) and its relationship to factors such as muscle perfusion and metabolic capacity are not well understood. We utilized nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to simultaneously study the Mb concentration ([Mb]), perfusion, and metabolic characteristics in calf muscles of athletes trained long term for either sprint or endurance running after plantar flexion exe...

PURPOSE The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effects of adding strength training to normal endurance training on running performance and running economy in well-trained female athletes. We hypothesized that the added strength training would improve performance and running economy through altered stiffness of the muscle-tendon complex of leg extensors. METHODS Nineteen femal...

BACKGROUND Economy, velocity/power at maximal oxygen uptake ([Formula: see text]) and endurance-specific muscle power tests (i.e. maximal anaerobic running velocity; vMART), are now thought to be the best performance predictors in elite endurance athletes. In addition to cardiovascular function, these key performance indicators are believed to be partly dictated by the neuromuscular system. One...

BACKGROUND Low-level laser therapy (LLLT) has been demonstrated to be effective in optimizing skeletal muscle performance in animal experiments and in clinical trials. However, little is known about the effects of LLLT on muscle recovery after endurance training. OBJECTIVE This study evaluates the effects of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) applied after an endurance training protocol on bioche...

OBJECTIVES A matched case-control study was carried out to evaluate biological risk indicators for recurrent non-specific low back pain in adolescents. METHODS Adolescents with recurrent non-specific low back pain (symptomatic; n = 28; mean (SD) age 14.9 (0.7) years) and matched controls (asymptomatic; n = 28; age 14.9 (0.7) years) with no history of non-specific low back pain participated. M...

BACKGROUND Aging may cause various functional abilities gradually deteriorate. With changes in social forms, the trend of functional fitness decline will change accordingly. Therefore, this study endeavored to identify the trends in functional fitness decline by comparing the differences in the functional fitness of females in various age groups. METHODS Thirty six healthy females were divide...