Impact of an eight-week weight training program on the muscular strength of men and women

Abstract

The objective of the present study was to verify the impact of an eight-week weight training program (WT) on the muscular strength. To do so, 23 men (20.7 ± 1.7 years) and 75 women (20.9 ± 2.1 years), apparently healthy and moderately active (regular physical activity < 2 times a week) were submitted to a WT program composed of 10 exercises for the different muscular groups during eight consecutive weeks. Three series of 8-12 RM were performed in each exercise in three weekly sessions with intervals each 48 hours. The pre and post-training muscular strength was determined by means of 1-RM tests in bench press, squat and arm curl exercises after five familiarization sessions. Increases on the muscular strength were verified in both genders in all exercises investigated as well as in the total amount of load lifted P < 0.01). Although men presented higher absolute strength when compared to women in all exercises evaluated, the gains observed along time were higher for women (14.7 vs. 7.6% in squat; 17.2 vs. 11.0% bench press; 20.4 vs. 14.0% in arm curl). The results suggest that the eight-week WT period seems to be sufficient to promote significant modifications in the muscular strength of men and women in different body segments (lower limbs, trunk and upper limbs).