1. The document defines various exercise and training related terminology including muscular strength, power, endurance, aerobic and anaerobic power. 2. It discusses general principles of exercise training such as individuality, specificity, reversibility, and progressive overload. 3. The document provides details on developing different types of resistance training programs and considerations for improving strength, hypertrophy, and power. It compares free weights versus machines and describes various resistance training methods.

1. Principles of exercise testing.
Radhika Chintamani
Terminology:
1. Muscular strength: maximal force that a muscle or muscle group can generate.
1-RM (1-repetition-maximum): strength defined as the maximal weight the individual can lift
with one or single effort.
Muscle strength can be accurately measured in the research lab through use of specialized
equipments that allows quantification of static strength and dynamic strength at various angles
in the joint ROM E.G. Isokinetic device, and etc.
Muscle strength is also influenced by functional and neural control of the muscle.
2. Muscular power: it is rate of performing work by the muscle, thus the product of force exerted
by the muscle and the velocity with which it is acting.
Formula=
Power=force x speed.
=force x [distance/time].
3. Muscular endurance: it is the capacity of a muscle to perform repeated number of contractions
over time.
Eg: a good marathon runner can only complete marathon if his quadriceps and hamstrings have
good muscular endurance, i.e. repeated contraction and relaxation of the muscle leads to
running.
4. Aerobic power: rate of energy release by cellular metabolic process that depend on the
availability and involvement of oxygen. Maximal aerobic refers to maximal synthesis of ATP and
is synonymous with the terms aerobic capacity and maximal oxygen uptake (VO2 max). Maximal
aerobic capacity is limited by CV system, Respiratory system and metabolic system. Testing of
aerobic power is done by graded exercise test to exhaustion during which VO2 is measured and
VO2max is determined.
5. Anaerobic power: rate of energy release by cellular metabolic process that occurs without
involvement of oxygen. Maximal anaerobic power or maximal anaerobic capacity is defined as
maximal capacity of anaerobic system to synthesize ATP. No universally accepted laboratory test
to determine maximal anaerobic capacity.
General principles of exercise training:
1. Principle of Individuality: All athletes do not respond in a similar way to all kinds of exercise.
Heredity plays a role in determining the body’s response to a single bout of exercise as well as
chronic changes to a specific exercise program. This is the principle of individuality. Every human
body differs in rate of cellular growth, metabolism, cardiovascular and respiratory regulation,
neural and endocrine regulation. This leads to tremendous variations in the individual’s
response to the exercise. Depending on the variety of response by the humans, they are

2. classified as high or low responders. Thus training program must be designed to allow for
individual variations.
2. Principle of specificity: training adaptation are highly responsible to the type of exercise,
intensity and frequency and the volume of the exercise performed. To maximize benefits
training adaptation must be specifically matched to the type of activity or sports the person
engages in.
Eg: weight lifters: strength training
Swimmers: endurance training.
Marathon runners: endurance training and low-intensity resistance training.
This principle states that the individual should train the whole body or a particular muscle or
muscle group keeping in mind the needs of his daily life.
Also, while treating the hemiparesis patients; it is important to treat the strength first and then
look for the endurance capacity. Whereas; while treating the ACL injury sportsman= should be
treated with low-intensity strength and high-intensity endurance. While treating for obesity or
abdominal fat reduction= strength + endurance of core muscle.
3. Principle of reversibility: training benefits are lost either due to discontinuation or reduce
abruptly. To avoid this all training programs must include maintenance program mandatorily.
4. Principle of progressive overload: the body adapts to training at a given volume and intensity,
the stresses place on the body must be increased progressively in order to achieve highest level
of physical fitness or further improvement.
5. Principle of variation/principle of periodization: proposed in 1960’s. systemic process of
changing one or more variables in the training program-mode, intensity, volume, frequency, etc
–overtime to allow for the training stimulus to remain challenging and effective. Training
intensity and volume of training are the most commonly manipulated aspects of training to
achieve peak levels of fitness for competition.
Involves=high initial training volume and low intensity
Gradually=decrease in volume and increase in intensity
Resistance training program:
Fleck and Kraemer suggested that needs analysis is the first step in designing and training program for
athletes. They stressed on the following points to achieve the needs of the patient:
1. What muscle or muscle group needs to be trained?
2. What kind of training must be performed?
3. What energy systems must be stressed?
4. What are the primary sites of concern for injury prevention?
Resistance training prg can be decided and prescribed in terms of:
1. Kind of exercise to be performed.
2. Order in which exercises should be performed.

3. 3. Number of sets of each exercises to be performed.
4. Rest interval between each exercise to be taken.
5. Amount of resistance, number of repetition, and velocity of movement to be used.
Improving strength, hypertrophy, and power:
 Strength= repetitions with both concentric and eccentric actions>isometric contractions.
 ECC training= action specific movts.
 ECC training= also increases strength of CON contraction of muscle.
 Large muscle gp bfr Small ms gp.
 Multiple joint bfr single jt ms gp.
 Higher intensity efforts bfr lower intensity efforts.
 Rest period of 2-3min=for novice and intermediate lifters, and for advanced lifters=1-2min.
 2%-10% increase in load to be applied=if an individual can perform the given workload at or
above the desired reps.
 Advanced lifters=always free wts, while novice or intermediate lifetrs= maschines or free wts.
Types of resistance training:
1. Static cont: or isometric cont. mainly for stability of the limb or any part in the static position.
strength gains are greater than that of dynamic training. Particularly used for core stability and
enhancing grip, when limb is immobilized and cannot go for dynamic cont, statics are helpful.
Facilitates recovery and reduce muscle atrophy and strength loss. It maintains the static
strength of the muscle.
Free weights vs machines: te ability of the muscle or muscle group generating force varies
widely at different angles and whether free wights are used or machines. Eg: elbow flexors have
greter strength or mechanical advantage at an angle of 90degs to 100degs elbow flexion. If
these muscle are trained at 60degs and 180degs of elbow flexion where they are
biomechanically week the muscle produces 67% and 71% respectively the amount of force at
those angles.
When individual uses free weghts ROM is less restricted than when individual uses machines to
trisn the muscles. Thus free wiegts maximally tax the weakest point in the ROM, and provide
moderate resitance in the midrange. In free wights athlets must control wt being lifted, hence
recruit more number of motro units (also of the supporting muscles) to gain control of the bar,
to stabilize wt lifted, and to maintain body balance. Optimal training facilty can be achieved as
free wts do not limit the ROM. If significant strength gains are to be achieved in a smaller
amplitude of time, free wts may provide greater strength gains than many types of weight
machines. On the other hand person using machines are also benifited with stabilization of the
body parts while doing exercises, limitation of the muscular action to that desired muscle
without firing extra groups.
2. Eccentric Training: one of the form of dynamic cont. emphasizes eccentric phase. With eccentric
cont muscles ability to resist force is considerably greater than with concentric cont. this training
is imporatnat for muscle hypertrophy.

4. 3. Variable-Resistance Training: with this type of training resitance is decreased at the weakest
point and increased at the strongest point in the ROM. Baisis for several popular resitance
training machines. Eg: here muscle is forced to train at the higher constant percentage of its
capacity throughtout each point on its ROM.
4. Isokinetic training: with equipment. The speed of movt does not vary. Controls angular velocity
and static contraction.
5. Dynamic cont: mainly for stability of limb or any part during motion. Particularly upper limb
muscles during arm swing in gait, or gait muscles. Dynamic muscle cont adds on strength to
muscles which are weak while mobilizing the bone attached to it actively. i.e. the muscle cannot
hold the bones and gradually terminate the action.