Strength and Power Acute Responses to Suspension Training

Suspension Training (ST) is a form of resistance training aiming at improving strength, endurance, coordination, flexibility, power, and core stability. Although ST is thought to elicit higher muscle activations than traditional exercises, only limited information is available on its acute effects on strength and power performances. PURPOSE: To evaluate strength and power acute responses after group ST in relation to gender. METHODS: 32 college students (16 M, 16 F; Age: 25.8±3.9years; Body Mass: 65.8±11.2Kg; Height: 166.9±8.9cm; BMI: 23.5±2.4kg/m2) volunteered to participate in the study. Before (PRE) and after (POST) a 45-min ST group session, Squat (SJ) and Countermovement (CMJ) Jumps were performed on a portable force plate, while lower limb Maximum Voluntary Contraction (MVC) at 90° angle isometric knee extension and grip strength (HG) were measured in preferred and non-preferred limbs through a piezoelectric force transducer and a hydraulic hand dynamometer, respectively. ANOVA for repeated measures was use to evaluate differences (p<0.05) in relation to gender and experimental session. RESULTS: As expected, M always showed highest strength and power values (p<0.02). In the POST condition, no significant improvements were found for HG, with best performances (p<0.02) emerging for the preferred limb (M-PRE: 429.3±31.2N; M-POST: 445.7±30.2N; F- PRE: 254.1±12.6N; F- POST: 256.4±13.5N) with respect to the non-preferred one (M-PRE: 399.4±16.2N; M-POST: 407.6±28.6N; F-PRE: 231.7±15.9N; F-POST: 236.1±18.1N). For MVC, only F showed differences between limbs (p<0.02), with highest values in the preferred leg (PRE: 238.8±15.1N; POST: 246.9±20.1N) and lowest in the non-preferred one (PRE: 222.4±19.9N; POST=230.9±14.5 N). After the session, M only showed improvements (p<0.02) in CMJ (PRE: 32.3±1.8cm; POST: 33.7±1.7cm) and MVC for the non-preferred leg (PRE: 276.1±16.6N; POST: 292.4±24.1N), while no differences emerged for SJ. CONCLUSIONS: Results shown that ST is a form of exercise useful to maintain and improve acute strength and power performances, in particular in male subjects. ST could be added in warm-up programs for sports where strength and power are key components.