Abstract
Purpose
The present study examined the effects of sustained, isometric low- versus high-intensity tasks on time to task failure (TTF), performance fatigability (PF), ratings of perceived exertion (RPE), and the perceived causes of task termination from a post-test questionnaire (PTQ).
Methods
Ten men (mean ± SD: age = 21.1 ± 2.3 years; height = 180.2 ± 5.7 cm; body mass = 79.5 ± 8.8 kg) performed maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVICs) before and after fatiguing, isometric forearm flexion tasks anchored to the torque corresponding to RPE values of 2 (TRQ2FT = 23.8 ± 7.1 N·m) and 8 (TRQ8FT = 60.9 ± 11.4 N·m). In addition, the subjects completed a PTQ which surveyed whether the perceived sensations of fatigue or pain, and/or the psychological factors of loss of focus and motivation contributed to the decision to terminate the task. Repeated measures ANOVAs, Wilcoxon-Signed Rank tests, and Spearman’s Rank-Order Correlations were used to analyze the data.
Results
Across the fatiguing tasks, there were similar decreases in MVIC torque (95.2 ± 20.3 vs. 68.9 ± 15.6 N·m; p < 0.001) and RPE values (p = 0.122) at task failure for TRQ2FT (7.4 ± 2.7) and TRQ8FT (8.9 ± 1.0), but a longer (p = 0.005) TTF for the TRQ2FT (245.0 ± 177.0 s) than TRQ8FT (36.8 ± 11.1 s).
Conclusions
Despite reaching task failure, the subjects were able to perform MVICs that were 100–300% greater than the target torque values within seconds of terminating the tasks. Thus, we hypothesized that task failure was not caused by an inability to produce sufficient torque to sustain the tasks, but rather an unwillingness to continue the task.
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Data availability
Data will be made available upon reasonable request.
Abbreviations
- MVIC:
-
Maximal Voluntary Isometric Contraction
- RPE:
-
Ratings of Perceived Exertion
- PTQ:
-
Post-Test Questionnaire
- TTF:
-
Time to Task Failure
- ANOVA:
-
Analysis of Variance
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RWS, RJS, GOJ, and TJH conceived and designed research; RWS and DGO performed experiments; RWS and JPW analyzed data; RWS interpreted results of experiments, prepared figures, and drafted manuscript; RWS and TJH edited and revised manuscript; DGO, JEA, TJN, RJS, GOJ, JPW, and TJH approved final version of manuscript.
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Smith, R.W., Ortega, D.G., Arnett, J.E. et al. The effects of sustained, low- and high-intensity isometric tasks on performance fatigability and the perceived responses that contributed to task termination. Eur J Appl Physiol 124, 1587–1599 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-023-05396-w
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-023-05396-w