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Factors influencing bilateral deficit and inter-limb asymmetry of maximal and explosive strength: motor task, outcome measure and muscle group

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European Journal of Applied Physiology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the influence of strength outcome [maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) torque vs. rate of torque development (RTD)], motor task (unilateral vs. bilateral) and muscle group (knee extensors vs. flexors) on the magnitude of bilateral deficits and inter-limb asymmetries in a large heterogeneous group of athletes.

Methods

259 professional/semi-professional athletes from different sports (86 women aged 21 ± 6 years and 173 men aged 20 ± 5 years) performed unilateral and bilateral “fast and hard” isometric maximal voluntary contractions of the knee extensors and flexors on a double-sensor dynamometer. Inter-limb asymmetries and bilateral deficits were compared across strength outcomes (MVC torque and multiple RTD measures), motor tasks and muscle groups.

Results

Most RTD outcomes showed greater bilateral deficits than MVC torque for knee extensors, but not for knee flexors. Most RTD outcomes, not MVC torque, showed higher bilateral deficits for knee extensors compared to knee flexors. For both muscle groups, all RTD measures resulted in higher inter-limb asymmetries than MVC torque, and most RTD measures resulted in greater inter-limb asymmetries during unilateral compared to bilateral motor tasks.

Conclusions

The results of the present study highlight the importance of outcome measure, motor task and muscle group when assessing bilateral deficits and inter-limb asymmetries of maximal and explosive strength. Compared to MVC torque and bilateral tasks, RTD measures and unilateral tasks could be considered more sensitive for the assessment of bilateral deficits and inter-limb asymmetries in healthy professional/semi-professional athletes.

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Abbreviations

MVC:

Maximal voluntary contraction

RTD:

Rate of torque development

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Primorska, Izola, Slovenia

    N. Sarabon & Z. Kozinc

  2. Laboratory for Motor Control and Motor Behavior, S2P, Science To Practice, Ltd., Ljubljana, Slovenia

    N. Sarabon

  3. London Sport Institute, Middlesex University, Greenlands Lane, Allianz Park, London, UK

    C. Bishop

  4. Human Performance Lab, Schulthess Clinic, Zurich, Switzerland

    N. A. Maffiuletti

Authors
  1. N. Sarabon
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  2. Z. Kozinc
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  3. C. Bishop
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  4. N. A. Maffiuletti
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by all listed authors. The first draft of the manuscript was written by NAM and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to N. A. Maffiuletti.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Communicated by William J. Kraemer.

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Sarabon, N., Kozinc, Z., Bishop, C. et al. Factors influencing bilateral deficit and inter-limb asymmetry of maximal and explosive strength: motor task, outcome measure and muscle group. Eur J Appl Physiol 120, 1681–1688 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-020-04399-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-020-04399-1

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