Influence of Muscle Quality on the Differences in Strength From Slow to Fast Velocities in Career Firefighters

• Autores: Gena R. Gerstner, Hayden K. Giuliani, Jacob A. Mota, Eric D. Ryan
• Localización: Journal of strength and conditioning research: the research journal of the NSCA, ISSN 1064-8011, Vol. 32, Nº. 10, 2018, págs. 2982-2986
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between ultrasound-derived muscle quality and the %decrease in peak torque (PT) from slow to fast velocities in career firefighters. Thirty-nine male career firefighters (mean ± SD: age = 36.90 ± 6.87 years; stature = 180.93 ± 6.98 cm; mass = 109.30 ± 20.57 kg; and body mass index [BMI] = 33.24 ± 4.95 kg·m-2) performed 3 maximal concentric isokinetic contractions at a slow (1.05 rad·s-1) and fast (4.19 rad·s-1) velocity in random order. The velocity-related decrease in PT was calculated as the %decrease from 1.05 to 4.19 rad·s-1. Ultrasonography was used to determine subcutaneous fat corrected echo intensity (EI) to represent muscle quality before strength testing. The results indicated that there was a significant relationship between EI and %decrease in PT while adjusting for age (rpartial = 0.331, p = 0.042), and age and BMI (rpartial = 0.325, p = 0.050). These findings suggest that velocity-impaired isokinetic strength may be influenced by alterations in skeletal muscle tissue composition. Future studies are needed to determine whether the %decrease in PT is related to performance during critical firefighter tasks.