Exercise Science Research Institute, Arizona State University, Tempe,
Arizona 85287, USA. matthew.rhea@asu.edu
The purpose of this investigation was to examine the effects of the
presence of an audience and competition on maximal weight lifting
performance. Thirty-two recreationally trained participants (15 men, 17
women; 21 +/- 2.5 years) performed a 1 repetition maximum (1 RM) bench
press during 3 different situations (coaction, competitive coaction, and
audience condition). Subjects also completed the Activation-Deactivation
Adjective Checklist Short Form following the 3 trials to measure arousal
state during each of the 3 trials. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were
found between competitive coaction and coaction trials as well as between
audience and coaction trials. Both men and women demonstrated the highest
performance in front of an audience (105 +/- 48 kg) followed by
competition (103 +/- 46 kg) and then the coaction trial (93 +/- 43 kg). No
significant difference in arousal was measured between trials. The data
suggest that performing a maximal lift in the presence of an audience or
in competition facilitates performance and support the self-presentation
and self-awareness theories. Social facilitation effects should be
controlled in research settings and may aid the performance of weight
lifting activities during events or competition.
Centre for Rehabilitation, Exercise and Sport Science, School of Human
Movement, Recreation and Performance, Victoria University, Melbourne,
Victoria, Australia. david.tod1@research.vu.edu.au
Psyching-up refers to self-directed cognitive strategies used immediately
prior to or during skill execution that are designed to enhance performance.
This review focuses on research that has investigated the effect of
psyching-up on force production; specifically, strength, muscular endurance
and power. Although firm conclusions are not possible, the research
tentatively suggests that psyching-up may enhance performance during dynamic
tasks requiring strength and/or muscular endurance. However, more research is
required. Power has received scant empirical attention and there are not
enough data to support any conclusions. Preparatory arousal appears to be the
most effective strategy although other strategies like imagery, self-talk and
attentional focus also have empirical support. The range of tasks that have
been used to measure force production have been limited to movements such as
handgrip, leg extension, bench press, sit-ups, press-ups, pull-ups, and the
standing broad jump. Additionally, most studies have used undergraduate and/or
untrained samples. Only a very small number of studies have examined
well-trained individuals. Currently, no explanation for why psyching-up may
influence force production has any substantive support. Although a small
number of studies have examined moderating and mediating variables, few
consistent patterns have emerged and knowledge in this area is somewhat
restricted. Given the importance that many athletes place on their mental
preparation just prior to performance this is an area that warrants further
examination. Research needs to examine a range of complex sport-specific tasks
and use well-trained samples. Additionally, research needs to further examine
why psyching-up may enhance force production.
Biomechanical Laboratory, Centre for Sport and Exercise Science, Waikato
Institute of Technology, Hamilton, New Zealand. dvt@aber.ac.uk
We investigated the effect of "psyching-up" on force production during the
bench press. Twelve men (mean age +/- SD: 27.4 +/- 11.2 years) and 8 women
(20.9 +/- 2.5 years) with strength-training experience performed 5 bench press
repetitions on a modified Biodex isokinetic dynamometer during 3 interventions.
The interventions were counterbalanced and included a free-choice psych-up, a
cognitive distraction, and an attention-placebo. Peak force recorded after
psyching-up (mean +/- SD: 764 +/- 269 N.m) was significantly different from
both distraction (703 +/- 282 N.m, p = 0.003) and attention-placebo (708 +/-
248 N.m, p = 0.01). The mean percentage increase in peak force from
distraction to psyching-up was 11.8% (6 to 18%, 95% confidence interval [CI])
and 8.1% from placebo to psyching-up (3 to 13%, 95% CI). The results of the
present study indicate that psyching-up may increase force production during
the bench press exercise in participants with at least 1 year
strength-training experience.
Performance Enhancement Consultants, Inc., Olney, Maryland, USA.
Force and electromyographic (EMG) activity of the biceps and triceps brachii
were measured in 15 strength-trained men during maximal isometric action of
the forearm flexors, with the elbow at 90 degrees, following 20-s periods of
psyching (PSY), reading aloud (RA), and mental arithmetic (MA). Perceived
arousal and attentional focus ratings for PSY were greater than those obtained
for RA and MA, which were undifferentiated. Perceived effort, biceps and
triceps EMG, and maximal force did not differ across conditions. Therefore, in
highly trained men under conditions of brief exertion, when the biomechanics
of the muscular action were controlled, psyching resulted in a perception of
enhanced readiness but did not influence force or muscular activation
differently from psychological states that were preceded by distraction.
Exercise Science Laboratory, Northern Michigan University, Morquette, USA.
BACKGROUND: Modern rock climbers stress the importance of hand-to-rock contact
strength as a factor for success in competitive sport climbing events, however,
the degree of handgrip fatigue that occurs during difficult climbing and the
time course of recovery from fatigue have not been previously described. The
purpose of this study was to characterize the nature of handgrip fatigue that
results from difficult continuous climbing until a fall occurs. METHODS:
Eleven expert-level rock climbers (age = 28.7 +/- 4.5 years) volunteered to
climb continuous laps over a pre-set competition-type route on an indoor
modular climbing wall until a fall occurred. The route difficulty (YDS rating
of 5.12 a) was near the limit of each subject's "on-sight" lead climbing
ability and placed an emphasis on physically difficult movements. "On-sight"
refers to a climbing style where the climber ascends the route on the first
try without falls and without prior viewing or information about the route.
Practice was allowed to enable each subject to master the individual technical
movements of the route. Fingertip blood samples were obtained 10 min pre-climb,
at post-climb, and at 5-, 10-, and 20-min recovery and analyzed for lactate.
Maximum handgrip force in Newtons was determined via dynamometry for each hand
and averaged for pre-climb, post-climb, and 5-, 10-, and 20-min recovery
periods. Right handgrip endurance, defined as the time that the dominant hand
handgrip force could be sustained above 70 percent of handgrip strength, was
determined pre-climb, post-climb, and at 20-min recovery. RESULTS: Mean
climbing time during testing was 12.9 +/- 8.5 min for 2.8 +/- 2.2 laps over
the route. Data among measurement times were analyzed using a repeated
measures ANOVA with Newman-Keuls post hoc tests. Handgrip strength decreased
by 22 percent and handgrip endurance decreased by 57 percent from pre-climb to
post-climb and both remained depressed after 20 minutes of resting recovery.
The pre-climb blood lactate of 1.4 +/- 0.8 mmol.l-1 significantly increased to
6.1 +/- 1.4 mmol.l-1 at post-climb and remained elevated (2.3 +/- 0.8 mmol.l-1)
at 20-min recovery. Percent decreases in handgrip strength were significantly
correlated with climbing time (R = 0.70), number of laps completed (R = 0.70),
and blood lactate (R = 0.76). Percent decreases in handgrip endurance were
significantly correlated with climbing time (R = 0.70) and number of laps
completed (R = 0.80), but not with blood lactate (R = 0.56). CONCLUSIONS: It
was concluded that handgrip strength and handgrip endurance decrease with
continuous difficult rock climbing and remain depressed after 20 minutes of
resting recovery. It also appears that handgrip strength recovers at a faster
rate than handgrip endurance.
School of Biomedical and Sports Science, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup,
WA, Australia. m.mcguigan@ecu.edu.au
We studied the effect of psyching-up on one-repetition maximum (1-RM)
performance and salivary cortisol responses during the squat exercise. Ten men
(age 21.6+/-1.4 years; mean+/-s) and ten women (age 22.4+/-2.8 years) with
weight training experience of 4.5+/-2.0 years participated in this study.
One-repetition maximum squats were performed on a Smith machine during each of
two different intervention conditions that were counterbalanced and consisted
of a free choice psych-up and a cognitive distraction. Saliva samples were
obtained at the beginning of each test session and immediately after the final
1-RM attempt. No significant difference in 1-RM was identified between
psyching-up (104+/-50 kg) and cognitive distraction (106+/-52 kg). Performing
a 1-RM in the squat exercise significantly increased salivary cortisol
concentrations during both conditions (P<0.05). There was no significant
difference in salivary cortisol responses between conditions. These results
suggest that psyching-up does not increase 1-RM performance during the squat
exercise in strength-trained individuals.
Department of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, University of Southern
California, Los Angeles, California 90089, USA. CDNAthlete@comcast.net
To determine if training status directly impacted the response to
postactivation potentiation, athletes in sports requiring explosive strength
(ATH; n = 7) were compared to recreationally trained (RT; n = 17) individuals.
Over the course of 4 sessions, subjects performed rebound and concentric-only
jump squats with 30%, 50%, and 70% 1 RM loads. Jump squats were performed 5
minutes and 18.5 minutes following control or heavy load warm-ups. Heavy load
warm-up consisted of 5 sets of 1 repetition at 90% 1 RM back squat. Jump squat
performance was assessed with a force platform and position transducer. Heavy
load warm-up did not have an effect on the subjects as a single sample.
However, when percent potentiation was compared between ATH and RT groups,
force and power parameters were significantly greater for ATH (p < 0.05).
Postactivation potentiation may be a viable method of acutely enhancing
explosive strength performance in athletic but not recreationally trained
individuals.Reference Data: Chiu, L.Z.F., A.C. Fry, L.W. Weiss, B.K.
Schilling, L.E. Brown, and S.L. Smith. Postactivation potentiation response in
athletic and recreationally trained individuals.
Mental preparation has long been thought of as an important aspect of physical
performance, especially in tasks requiring muscular strength. Recent studies
in sport psychology have addressed this issue, mainly through the
investigation of 'psych-up' strategies and effects. The overall trend in such
experiments supports the use of mental preparation strategies for strength
tasks, but the evidence is less clear for other types of activities. A recent
review on mental practice by Feltz and Landers (1983) employed a
'meta-analysis' technique to analyse the statistical trends in 60 studies of
mental practice. They compared the 'effect sizes' for mental practice on
cognitive, motor and strength tasks and reported a significantly larger effect
size for cognitive tasks than for the others and only a small effect size for
strength tasks. This suggests that mental practice is less effective in
strength activities and thus appears to question the evidence reported in the
'psych-up' literature. This paper proposes, therefore, that a distinction is
necessary between mental preparation and mental practice in order to clarify
the findings. Future experiments and reviews must address the issue of
distinguishing between types of mental strategies and types of tasks in both
practice and preparation.
PMID: 4094020 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
"Psyching-up" enhances force production during the bench
press exercise.
Biomechanical Laboratory, Centre for Sport and Exercise Science, Waikato
Institute of Technology, Hamilton, New Zealand. dvt@aber.ac.uk
We investigated the effect of "psyching-up" on force production during the
bench press. Twelve men (mean age +/- SD: 27.4 +/- 11.2 years) and 8 women
(20.9 +/- 2.5 years) with strength-training experience performed 5 bench press
repetitions on a modified Biodex isokinetic dynamometer during 3 interventions.
The interventions were counterbalanced and included a free-choice psych-up, a
cognitive distraction, and an attention-placebo. Peak force recorded after
psyching-up (mean +/- SD: 764 +/- 269 N.m) was significantly different from
both distraction (703 +/- 282 N.m, p = 0.003) and attention-placebo (708 +/-
248 N.m, p = 0.01). The mean percentage increase in peak force from
distraction to psyching-up was 11.8% (6 to 18%, 95% confidence interval [CI])
and 8.1% from placebo to psyching-up (3 to 13%, 95% CI). The results of the
present study indicate that psyching-up may increase force production during
the bench press exercise in participants with at least 1 year
strength-training experience.
School of Biomedical and Sports Science, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, WA,
Australia. m.mcguigan@ecu.edu.au
We studied the effect of psyching-up on one-repetition maximum (1-RM)
performance and salivary cortisol responses during the squat exercise. Ten men
(age 21.6+/-1.4 years; mean+/-s) and ten women (age 22.4+/-2.8 years) with
weight training experience of 4.5+/-2.0 years participated in this study.
One-repetition maximum squats were performed on a Smith machine during each of
two different intervention conditions that were counterbalanced and consisted
of a free choice psych-up and a cognitive distraction. Saliva samples were
obtained at the beginning of each test session and immediately after the final
1-RM attempt. No significant difference in 1-RM was identified between
psyching-up (104+/-50 kg) and cognitive distraction (106+/-52 kg). Performing
a 1-RM in the squat exercise significantly increased salivary cortisol
concentrations during both conditions (P<0.05). There was no significant
difference in salivary cortisol responses between conditions. These results
suggest that psyching-up does not increase 1-RM performance during the squat
exercise in strength-trained individuals.
Centre for Rehabilitation, Exercise and Sport Science, School of Human
Movement, Recreation and Performance, Victoria University, Melbourne,
Victoria, Australia. david.tod1@research.vu.edu.au
Psyching-up refers to self-directed cognitive strategies used immediately
prior to or during skill execution that are designed to enhance performance.
This review focuses on research that has investigated the effect of
psyching-up on force production; specifically, strength, muscular endurance
and power. Although firm conclusions are not possible, the research
tentatively suggests that psyching-up may enhance performance during dynamic
tasks requiring strength and/or muscular endurance. However, more research is
required. Power has received scant empirical attention and there are not
enough data to support any conclusions. Preparatory arousal appears to be the
most effective strategy although other strategies like imagery, self-talk and
attentional focus also have empirical support. The range of tasks that have
been used to measure force production have been limited to movements such as
handgrip, leg extension, bench press, sit-ups, press-ups, pull-ups, and the
standing broad jump. Additionally, most studies have used undergraduate and/or
untrained samples. Only a very small number of studies have examined
well-trained individuals. Currently, no explanation for why psyching-up may
influence force production has any substantive support. Although a small
number of studies have examined moderating and mediating variables, few
consistent patterns have emerged and knowledge in this area is somewhat
restricted. Given the importance that many athletes place on their mental
preparation just prior to performance this is an area that warrants further
examination. Research needs to examine a range of complex sport-specific tasks
and use well-trained samples. Additionally, research needs to further examine
why psyching-up may enhance force production.
