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The Impacts of Cluster vs. Traditional Power Training on Physical Performance and Muscle Morphology in Healthy Older Adults
Location: 53
Mentor: Dr. Joseph Signorile
To compare the effects of cluster (CPT) vs traditional power training (TPT) on changes in muscle thickness (MT), echo intensity (EI), and pennation angle (PA) of the rectus femoris (RF) and vastus lateralis (VL) and to assess performance changes including: 10m habitual and maximal gait speeds, 5-time sit-to-stand, timed up-and-go (TUG), seated medicine ball throw, 1- repetition maximum of the chest (CP-1RM) and leg press (LP-1RM), and peak power for the chest (CP-PP) and leg press (LP-PP). Participants were recruited from a university population and individuals residing in surrounding neighborhoods. MT, EI, and PA for left and right RF and VL using B-mode ultrasound and physical performance were measured before and after training. For all tests, separate 2 x 2 repeated measures ANOVAs were conducted with pairwise comparisons reported as MDiff±SE. For the sample, increases in MT were shown for the right (.194 ± 0.077cm; p=0.018) and left (.134 ± 0.049cm; p=0.011) RF. For EI of the right VL, an increase in quality was seen (-7.421 ± 3.327; p=0.035). Greater PA was seen for the right VL (1.992 ± 0.845; p=0.027), which may indicate greater myofibrillar packing and force production. Significant improvements were shown for TUG (-.495 ± .117s; p<.001), CP-1RM (6.153 ± 2.48kg; p=.021), LP-1RM (18.198 ± 5.508kg; p=.003), CP-PP (53.077 ± 23.75W; p=.035) and LP-PP (28.667 ± 12.505W; p=.032). 12-week CPT and TPT interventions can produce similar improvements in sit-to-stand performance, total body strength and power, and quadriceps thickness in older adults despite the increased recovery provided with CPT.
