Immediate Effects of Endurance Exercise on Subsequent Strength Performance

Abstract

The order in which strength and endurance training are performed within a concurrent training regimen can vary. Previous work has employed strength training prior [1-3] and subsequent to [4-7] endurance exercise. As the focus of much work into concurrent training is the inhibition of strength development, it is important to understand the influence of any prior endurance exercise on strength-type performance. Within the concurrent training paradigm there exist the acute and chronic hypotheses pertaining to the "interference effect". The chronic hypothesis suggests that the trained muscle is placed under conflicting training stimuli during a longitudinal concurrent training programme, as the muscle is attempting to adapt simultaneously to both strength and endurance training [8]. This chapter will however not focus on the chronic effect, but rather the acute effect of endurance exercise on subsequent strength performance. The acute hypothesis, that was initially proposed by Craig et al. [9], relates to the inhibition of strength development resulting from endurance (in this case running) training carried out immediately prior to the strength training. In other words, simply performing strength and endurance training concurrently may not inhibit strength development; rather, that endurance loading immediately prior to strength training results in diminished quality, volume, and intensity of strength training due to residual fatigue. It was proposed that this residual fatigue resulting from prior endurance training might compromise the ability of the trained muscles to develop adequate muscular tension during strength training [9]. Consequently, the ability of muscle to generate a sufficient stimulus to complete the strength session could be compromised and hence reduce the potential for a positive