Shizuo Katamoto

Duration of static stretching influences muscle force production in hamstring muscles.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether duration of static stretching could affect the maximal voluntary contraction (MVC).Volunteer male subjects (n = 10) underwent 2 different durations of static stretching of their hamstring muscles in the dominant leg: 30 and 60 seconds. No static stretching condition was used as a control condition. Before and after each stretching trial, hamstring flexibility was measured by a sit and reach test. MVC was then measured using the maximal effort of knee flexion. The hamstring flexibility was significantly increased by 30 and 60 seconds of static stretching (control: 0.5 ± 1.1 cm; 30 seconds: 2.1 ± 1.8 cm; 60 seconds: 3.0 ± 1.6 cm); however, there was no significant difference between 30 and 60 seconds of static stretching conditions. The MVC was significantly lowered with 60 seconds of static stretching compared to the control and 30 seconds of the stretching conditions (control: 287.6 ± 24.0 N; 30 seconds: 281.8 ± 24.2 N; 60 seconds: 262.4 ± 36.2 N). However, there was no significant difference between control and 30 seconds of static stretching conditions. Therefore, it was concluded that the short duration (30 seconds) of static stretching did not have a negative effect on the muscle force production.

Satellite cell pool enhancement in rat plantaris muscle by endurance training depends on intensity rather than duration

Aim:u2002 Increases in the number of satellite cells are necessary for the maintenance of normal muscle function. Endurance training enhances the satellite cell pool. However, it remains unclear whether exercise intensity or exercise duration is more important to enhance the satellite cell pool. This study examined the effects of different intensity and duration of endurance training on the satellite cell pool in rat skeletal muscle.

Sensory processing during kinesthetic aftereffect following illusory hand movement elicited by tendon vibration

We investigated how the human sensory-motor system elicits a somatosensory aftereffect. Tendon vibration of a limb excites the muscle spindle afferents that contribute to eliciting illusory movements of the limb. After the cessation of vibration, a transient sensation in which the vibrated limb returns towards its original position (kinesthetic aftereffect) is often experienced, even in the absence of the afferent inputs recruited by the vibration. We vibrated the tendon of either the right wrist extensor or flexor muscle that elicited an illusory flexion or extension movement, which was followed by its corresponding extension or flexion aftereffect. First, we psychophysically investigated how the preceding illusory movement affects the aftereffect. Second, we examined the cortico-spinal excitability during the aftereffect to evaluate its changes from the time during the illusion. We measured the amplitude of the motor-evoked potential that is evoked by a single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation to the hand section of the contralateral motor cortex (M1). All 19 subjects experienced the aftereffect, and the amount of aftereffect was approximately 70% of the preceding illusion. During the illusion, the cortico-spinal excitability increased more in non-vibrated than in vibrated muscle, so as to reflect the illusory directions. During the aftereffect, the excitability was significantly reduced only in the non-vibrated muscle, with no change in the vibrated muscle, which, in turn, caused an opposite pattern in the unbalanced excitability between the two muscles, and the degree of unbalanced excitability was correlated with the sensation of aftereffect. The kinesthetic aftereffect seems to be elicited by a sensory process that is determined by the preceding illusory movements. Motor-cortical processing of the unbalanced sensory information from the stimulated and non-stimulated muscles may contribute to the elicitation of kinesthetic aftereffect.

Elevation of body temperature is an essential factor for exercise-increased extracellular heat shock protein 72 level in rat plasma

This study examined whether the exercise-increased extracellular heat shock protein 72 (eHsp72) levels in rats was associated with body temperature elevation during exercise. In all, 26 female Sprague-Dawley rats (3 mo old) were assigned randomly to control (CON; n = 8), exercise under warm temperature (WEx; n = 9), or exercise under cold temperature (CEx; n = 9). The WEx and CEx were trained at 25 degrees C or 4 degrees C, respectively, for nine days using a treadmill. Before and immediately after the final exercise bout, the colonic temperatures were measured as an index of body temperature. The animals were subsequently anesthetized, and blood samples were collected and centrifuged. Plasma samples were obtained to assess their eHsp72 levels. Only the colonic temperature in WEx was increased significantly (P < 0.05) by exercise. The eHsp72 level in WEx was significantly higher (P < 0.05) than that of either the CON or CEx. However, no significant difference was found between CON and CEx. Regression analyses revealed that the eHsp72 level increased as a function of the body temperature. In another experiment, the eHsp72 level of animals with body temperature that was passively elevated through similar kinetics to those of the exercise was studied. Results of this experiment showed that mere body temperature elevation was insufficient to induce eHsp72 responses. Collectively, our results suggest that body temperature elevation during exercise is important for induction of exercise-increased eHsp72. In addition, the possible role of body temperature elevation is displayed when the exercise stressor is combined with it.

Heat stress activates the Akt/mTOR signalling pathway in rat skeletal muscle.

It is well known that various stimuli, such as mechanical stress and nutrients, induce muscle hypertrophy thorough the Akt/mTOR signalling pathway, which is a key mediator of protein synthesis and hypertrophy in skeletal muscle. It was recently reported that heat stress also induces an increase in muscle weight and muscle protein content. In addition, heat stress enhances Akt/mTOR signalling after one bout of resistance exercise. However, it remains unclear whether increased temperature itself stimulates the Akt/mTOR signalling pathway.

Effects of training volume on strength and hypertrophy in young men.

Abstract Sooneste, H, Tanimoto, M, Kakigi, R, Saga, N, and Katamoto, S. Effects of training volume on strength and hypertrophy in young men. J Strength Cond Res 27(1): 8–13, 2013—Knowledge of the effects of training volume on upper limb muscular strength and hypertrophy is rather limited. In this study, both arms of the same subject were trained in a crossover-like design with different training volumes (1 or 3 sets) to eliminate the effects of genetic variation and other individual differences. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of training volume on muscular strength and hypertrophy in sedentary, untrained young Japanese men. Eight subjects (age, 25.0 ± 2.1 years; body mass, 64.2 ± 7.9 kg; height, 171.7 ± 5.1 cm) were recruited. The subjects trained their elbow flexor muscles twice per week for 12 consecutive weeks using a seated dumbbell preacher curl. The arms were randomly assigned to training with 1 or 3 sets. The training weight was set at 80% of 1 repetition maximum for all sets. The 3-set protocol increased cross-sectional area significantly more than did 1 set (1 set, 8.0 ± 3.7%; 3 sets, 13.3 ± 3.6%, p < 0.05). Furthermore, gains in strength with the 3-set protocol tended to be greater than those with 1 set (1 set, 20.4 ± 21.6%; 3 sets, 31.7 ± 22.0%, p = 0.076). Based on the results, the authors recommend 3 sets for sedentary untrained individuals. However, this population should incorporate light training days of 1 set into their training program to prevent overtraining and ensure adherence. The findings are relevant for the sedentary, untrained young male population and must be interpreted within the context of this study.

Heat stress enhances mTOR signaling after resistance exercise in human skeletal muscle

This study investigated the effect of heat stress (HS) on mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling involved in translation initiation after resistance exercise in human skeletal muscle. Eight young male subjects performed four sets of six maximal repetitions of knee extension exercises, with or without HS, in a randomized crossover design. HS was applied to the belly of the vastus lateralis by using a microwave therapy unit prior to and during exercise. Muscle biopsies were taken from the vastus lateralis before, immediately after, and 1xa0h after exercise. HS significantly increased the phosphorylation of Akt/PKB, mTOR, and ribosomal protein S6 at 1xa0h after exercise (Pxa0<xa00.05), and the 4E-BP1 phosphorylation level, which had initially decreased with exercise, had recovered by 1xa0h after exercise with HS. In addition, the phosphorylation of ribosomal S6 kinase 1 was significantly increased immediately after exercise with HS (Pxa0<xa00.05). These results indicate that HS enhances mTOR signaling after resistance exercise in human skeletal muscle.

Six-year prospective study of physical fitness and incidence of disability among community-dwelling Japanese elderly women

Aim:u2003 To identify physical fitness factors associated with occurrence of disability requiring long‐term care and reviewing physical fitness factors to identify threshold values at which future care risk is expected to rise rapidly.

Oxygen uptake, heart rate, perceived exertion, and integrated electromyogram of the lower and upper extremities during level and Nordic walking on a treadmill

The purpose of this study was to characterize responses in oxygen uptake (V·O2), heart rate (HR), perceived exertion (OMNI scale) and integrated electromyogram (iEMG) readings during incremental Nordic walking (NW) and level walking (LW) on a treadmill. Ten healthy adults (four men, six women), who regularly engaged in physical activity in their daily lives, were enrolled in the study. All subjects were familiar with NW. Each subject began walking at 60u2009m/min for 3u2009minutes, with incremental increases of 10u2009m/min every 2u2009minutes up to 120u2009m/minV·O2 ,V·E and HR were measured every 30u2009seconds, and the OMNI scale was used during the final 15u2009seconds of each exercise. EMG readings were recorded from the triceps brachii, vastus lateralis, biceps femoris, gastrocnemius, and tibialis anterior muscles.V·O2 was significantly higher during NW than during LW, with the exception of the speed of 70u2009m/min (Pu2009<u20090.01).V·E and HR were higher during NW than LW at all walking speeds (Pu2009<u20090.05 to 0.001). OMNI scale of the upper extremities was significantly higher during NW than during LW at all speeds (Pu2009<u20090.05). Furthermore, the iEMG reading for the VL was lower during NW than during LW at all walking speeds, while the iEMG reading for the BF and GA muscles were significantly lower during NW than LW at some speeds. These data suggest that the use of poles in NW attenuates muscle activity in the lower extremities during the stance and push-off phases, and decreases that of the lower extremities and increase energy expenditure of the upper body and respiratory system at certain walking speeds.

Short-term effects of dietary fat on intramyocellular lipid in sprinters and endurance runners.

The effect of short-term fat loading on intramyocellular lipid (IMCL) in different types of muscle in endurance runners and sprinters has not been fully elucidated yet. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of dietary lipid on IMCL in soleus muscle (SOL) and tibialis anterior muscle (TA) during training period in endurance runners and sprinters. Seven male endurance runners and 7 male sprinters were selected to participate in the study. We measured TA- and SOL-IMCL levels after 3-day course of isocaloric normal- (25%), high- (60%), and low-fat (10%) diet during training period by (1)H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy in each subject. In sprinters, TA- and SOL-IMCL levels were comparable after each diet protocol. However, in endurance runners, TA-IMCL levels after normal-fat and high-fat diets were 1.7 times and 3.0 times higher than that after low-fat diet, respectively. The SOL-IMCL values after normal-fat diet and high-fat diet were 1.5 times and 1.6 times higher than that after low-fat diet, respectively. In addition, the TA-IMCL level after high-fat diet, but not SOL-IMCL, was significantly higher compared with that after normal-fat diet. Our data suggested that short-term dietary fat challenge during training period significantly altered IMCL level in endurance runners, but not in sprinters. In addition, response to fat loading on IMCL was influenced by variation of muscle type in endurance runners. These phenotypic and regional differences might be explained by differences in type of exercise training and muscle fiber composition.