Stepwise Load Reduction Training: A New Training Concept for Skeletal Muscle and Energy Systems.

An increased ability to supply energy to skeletal muscle is expected to contribute to greater athletic performance, and therefore, a variety of training methods are used for improving these energy supply systems. These methods are classified into two broad categories: a bout of continuous exercise at a given load/intensity and intermittent bouts of exercise at a given load/intensity with recovery intervals. Interestingly, recent work suggests that a training method which starts at a high load/intensity and gradually decreases the exercise load/intensity within a given training set (stepwise load reduction training) may provide a range of adaptations.

The Effects of Transdermal Nicotine Patches on the Cardiorespiratory and Lactate Responses During Exercise from Light to Moderate Intensity: Implications for Exercise Prescription during Smoking Cessation.

Exercise can help ease withdrawal symptoms of smokers. However, there is little information about the physiological responses, such as cardiorespiratory and lactate (La) responses, during exercise from light to moderate intensity combined with transdermal nicotine patches (TNPs) in smokers. This study aimed to investigate the effect of TNPs on the cardiorespiratory and La responses during exercise at light to moderate intensity.

Heart Rate Responses and Exercise Intensity During A Prolonged 4-Hour Individual Cycling Race among Japanese Recreational Cyclists.

Heart rate (HR) during different endurance cycling races and events are investigated for professional cyclist, however, enduro races to compete for total laps and distance covered within a fixed time using a circuit course has not yet been investigated. This study examined the heart rate (HR) and exercise intensity during an enduro cycling race. Ten male Japanese amateur cyclists performed cycling individually for at least 2 consecutive hours.

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·O(2)), 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.

Risk factors for frequent work-related burn and cut injuries and low back pain among commercial kitchen workers in Japan.

This study investigated risk factors for frequent work-related burn and cut injuries and low back pain (LBP) among kitchen workers including personal, work-related and environmental factors. Subjects were 991 kitchen workers in 103 schools, 17 hospitals and nursing homes, and 6 restaurants in central Japan. A cross-sectional survey was carried out using a structured self-administered questionnaire.

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

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.

Workers' load and job-related stress after a reform and work system change in a hospital kitchen in Japan.

Objectives: Many kitchen work environments are considered to be severe; however, when kitchens are reformed or work systems are changed, the question of how this influences kitchen workers and environments arises. The purpose of this study is to examine whether there was a change in workload and job-related stress for workers after a workplace environment and work system change in a hospital kitchen.

Methods: The study design is a pre-post comparison of a case, performed in 2006 and 2008.

Effects of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation stretching and static stretching on maximal voluntary contraction.

This study was undertaken to investigate and compare the effects of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching and static stretching on maximal voluntary contraction (MVC). Thirteen male university students (age, 20 ± 1 years; height, 172.2 ± 4.

Theoretical study of factors affecting ball velocity in instep soccer kicking.

The objective of this study was to investigate the factors affecting ball velocity at the final instant of the impact phase (t1) in full instep soccer kicking. Five experienced male university soccer players performed maximal full instep kicks for various foot impact points using a one-step approach. The kicking motions were captured two dimensionally by a high-speed camera at 2,500 fps.

Determinants of intramyocellular lipid accumulation after dietary fat loading in non-obese men.

Unlabelled: Aims/Introduction:  Accumulation of intramyocellular lipid (IMCL) is associated with insulin resistance. However, the factors affecting the change in IMCL remain to be elucidated. The aim of the present study was to determine the factors that influence the change in IMCL level after high-fat loading.

The effects of work environments on thermal strain on workers in commercial kitchens.

The purpose of this study was to clarify the effect of working environments of different kinds of commercial kitchens on the thermal strain of kitchen workers. This study design was cross-sectional study, and data collection was performed during busy time in commercial kitchen from August to September 2006. The research subjects were 8 institutions, involving 7 cookers, and 16 men.

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.

Evaluation of subjective thermal strain in different kitchen working environments using subjective judgment scales.

To elucidate the subjective thermal strain of workers in kitchen working environments, we performed a cross-sectional study involving 991 workers in 126 kitchen facilities in Japan, using a self-reporting questionnaire survey and subjective judgment scales (SJS). The ambient temperature, mean radiant temperature (MRT), and wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) index were measured in 10 kitchen facilities of the 126 kitchens. The association of SJS with the types of kitchen was estimated by multiple logistic regression models.

Numerical study of ball behavior in side-foot soccer kick based on impact dynamic theory.

This study examined the factors affecting the ball velocity and rotation for side-foot soccer kick using a numerical investigation. Five experienced male university soccer players performed side-foot kicks with various attack angles and impact points using a one-step approach. The kicking motions were captured three-dimensionally by two high-speed cameras at 2500 fps.

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

Aim: 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.

Methods: This prospective cohort study included 74-88-year-old women who were living at home and who reported no disability in activities of daily living. The subjects completed 16 physical fitness tests, assessing walking ability, muscular strength, flexibility, agility and balance, and participated in a follow-up interview 6 years later.

Effects of voluntary wheel running on satellite cells in the rat plantaris muscle.

This study investigated the effects of voluntary wheel running on satellite cells in the rat plantaris muscle. Seventeen 5-week-old male Wistar rats were assigned to a control (n = 5) or training (n = 12) group. Each rat in the training group ran voluntarily in a running-wheel cage for 8 weeks.

Effects of heating appliances with different energy efficiencies on associations among work environments, physiological responses, and subjective evaluation of workload.

To clarify the association between heat stress, physiological responses and subjective workload evaluations in kitchens using an induction heating stove (IH stove) or gas stove. The study design was an experimental trial involving 12 young men. The trial measured ambient dry-bulb temperature, globe temperature, wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and relative humidity; the subjects' weight, heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen uptake, amount of activity, body temperature, subjective awareness of heat and workload before and after mock cooking for 30 min.

Alpha-actinin-3 levels increase concomitantly with fast fibers in rat soleus muscle.

Alpha (alpha)-actinin-3 is located in the skeletal muscle Z-line and forms actin-actin crosslinks. An interesting property of alpha-actinin-3 is its expression pattern, which is restricted to fast type II skeletal muscle fibers. However, little is known about the response of alpha-actinin-3 levels to changes in skeletal muscle such as fiber type transformation.

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.

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.

Effect of heat preconditioning by microwave hyperthermia on human skeletal muscle after eccentric exercise.

The purpose of this study was to clarify whether heat preconditioning results in less eccentric exercise-induced muscle damage and muscle soreness, and whether the repeated bout effect is enhanced by heat preconditioning prior to eccentric exercise. Nine untrained male volunteers aged 23 ± 3 years participated in this study. Heat preconditioning included treatment with a microwave hyperthermia unit (150 W, 20 min) that was randomly applied to one of the subject's arms (MW); the other arm was used as a control (CON).

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.