Effects of squat lift training and free weight muscle training on maximum lifting load and isolinetic peak torque of young adults without impairments.
OBJECTIVE
Manual lifting is a frequent cause of back injury, and there is no evidence as to which training mode can provide the best training effect for lifting performance and muscle force. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a squat lift training and a free weight muscle training program on the maximum lifting load and isokinetic peak torque in subjects without known neuromuscular or musculoskeletal impairments.


METHODS
Thirty-six adults (20 male, 16 female) without known neuromuscular or musculoskeletal impairments participated. The subjects' mean age was 21.25 years (SD=1.16, range=20-24).


METHODS
Subjects were divided into 3 groups. Subjects in group 1 (n=12) performed squat lift training. Subjects in group 2 (n=12) participated in free weight resistance training of their shoulder abductors, elbow flexors, knee extensors and trunk extensors. Subjects in group 3 (n=12) served as controls. The maximum lifting load and isokinetic peak torques of the trunk extensors, knee extensors, elbow flexors, and shoulder abductors of each subject were measured before and after the study. Training was conducted on alternate days for 4 weeks, with an initial load of 80% of each subject's maximum capacity and with the load increased by 5% weekly.


RESULTS
All groups were comparable for all measured variables before the study. After 4 weeks, subjects in groups 1 and 2 demonstrated more improvement in maximum lifting load and isokinetic peak torque of the back extensors compared with the subjects in group 3, but the 2 training groups were not different.


CONCLUSIONS
The findings demonstrate that both squat lift and free weight resistance training are equally effective in improving the lifting load and isokinetic back extension performance of individuals without impairments.
Yeung
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Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
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D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D019567:Back Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control*; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017770:Lifting; D008297:Male; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000502:physiology; D019415:Torque; D014891:Weight Lifting