The effects of high and low repetition resistance training on neuromuscular fatigue and recovery in children and adults

Abstract

The major objectives for this thesis included: 1) determining the effects of high and low repetition resistance training on neuromuscular fatigue in children while utilizing one minute rest intervals, and 2) comparing the corresponding responses of children to adults. These objectives along with the integration of the known literature on fatigue and recovery in children will help develop appropriate standards with respect to rest intervals and resistance training in children. The existing literature on pediatric resistance training is scarce, but there are a few studies that indicate children recover quicker than adults. Despite this notion, it is important to understand why children recover quicker, or why a child's body has a tendency not to fatigue to the same extent as an adult. The present study determined that children are more likely to exhibit decrements in performance due to problems with muscle coordination as oppose to neuromuscular fatigue. In addition, decreased ratings of perceived exertion may suggest that children may not put forth a maximum effort to the same intensity as an adult. As expected, children were reported to recover faster than the adults during both RT protocols.