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Objectives:

This study compared muscle growth in response to very low load resistance training with direct pulsed current (DPC) stimulation and traditional high load training.

Methods:

Twenty-six resistance trained individuals had each leg assigned to one of two unilateral knee extension protocols: 1) 4 sets of 20 repetitions at~ 10% one-repetition maximum (1RM) and inter-set rest periods of 30 s (DPC) and 2) 4 sets to muscular failure at~ 70% 1RM (TRAD). Muscle thickness (MTH), 1RM strength, and local muscular endurance (LME) were measured before and after 8-weeks of training. An alpha level of 0.05 was used for all comparisons.

Results:

MTH increased similarly between TRAD and DPC at the 50%(0.24 cm, 95% CI: 0.11-0.36), and the 60% anterior sites (0.25 cm, 95% CI: 0.10-. 040), as well as the lateral (0.25 cm, 95% CI: 0.10-. 040) and medial sites (0.21 cm, 95% CI: 0.10-0.31), but was greater for TRAD at …