Acute Power Training Effects in Older Adults (APTE-OA)

Hasselt University

Status: Enrolling

Conditions: Older Adults (65 Years and Older); Muscle Power; Healthy Older Adults; Physiological Responses; Neuromuscular Function; Functional Performance

Treatments: Behavioral: Power Training at Different Fatigue Levels

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT07522398

B1152025000035

BOF25OWB22 (Other Grant/Funding Number)

Details and patient eligibility

About

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn how older adults respond to power training when the level of fatigue during exercise is different. Power training means performing fast movements with moderate loads to improve strength, power and mobility.

The main questions the study aims to answer are:

• How does the level of fatigue during power training acutely affect strength, movement, and muscle function?
• How does it affect recovery, muscle soreness, and how hard the exercise feels?

Researchers will compare three power-training sessions with different fatigue levels to see which approach may be safest and most effective for older adults.

Participants will be healthy older adults aged 65 to 85 years. Each participant will complete three supervised exercise sessions on a leg press machine. The sessions will take place about one week apart.

During the study, participants will:

• Perform power training on a pneumatic leg press machine
• Complete strength and mobility tests before and after exercise
• Provide small blood samples to measure body responses to exercise
• Rate how hard the exercise feels
• Report muscle soreness for up to two days after exercise

The results may help researchers design safer and more effective power-training programs to improve strength, mobility, and recovery in older adults.

Enrollment: 42 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 65 to 85 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria:

Participants must:

• Be 65 to 85 years old.
• Be able to live independently and perform everyday activities without help.
• Not have regularly done resistance or strength training in the past year.
• Be able to understand study instructions and communicate in the study language.
• Have a recent statement from their treating physician confirming that their heart and blood vessels are healthy enough to safely take part in this study.

Exclusion criteria

Participants will not be eligible if they have any of the following:

• Unstable heart disease, neurological disease, acute infection, or fever.
• Use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen, in the 5 days before the study.
• Use of whey protein, casein, or amino acid supplements in the month before the study.
• Acute or chronic injuries to the legs or lower body muscles.
• Any injury or condition that prevents safe leg extension exercises.
• Recent lower-limb joint replacement (less than 6 months ago).
• Dependence on walking aids.
• Current participation in another interventional trial.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Crossover Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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42 participants in 3 patient groups

Low-Fatigue Power Training (10% velocity loss)

Experimental group

Description:

Participants perform a single supervised session of power training on a pneumatic leg press, consisting of 4 sets. During the exercise, movement speed is continuously monitored. In this arm, the exercise set will be stopped when movement speed decreases by 10% compared with the fastest repetition, which corresponds to a low level of fatigue (small amount of repetitions).

Treatment:

Behavioral: Power Training at Different Fatigue Levels

Moderate Fatigue Power Training (30% velocity loss)

Experimental group

Description:

Participants perform a single supervised session of power training on a pneumatic leg press, consisting of 4 sets. During the exercise, movement speed is continuously monitored. In this arm, the exercise set will be stopped when movement speed decreases by 30% compared with the fastest repetition, which corresponds to a moderate level of fatigue (more repetitions, performed closer to muscle failure).

Treatment:

Behavioral: Power Training at Different Fatigue Levels

Cluster-Set Power Training (10% Velocity Loss)

Experimental group

Description:

Participants perform a single supervised session of power training on a pneumatic leg press. In this arm, the exercise is organized into 4 cluster sets. A cluster set consists of small groups of repetitions separated by short rest periods within the set. Participants will perform clusters of 3-4 repetitions with 20 seconds of rest between clusters. During the exercise, movement speed is continuously monitored. Each cluster will be performed within the range of 10% velocity loss compared with the fastest repetition, which corresponds to a low level of fatigue. Clusters will continue until the total number of repetitions matches the training volume (amount of total repetitions) reached in the 30% velocity loss condition. This design allows participants to complete a similar total training volume as in the moderate fatigue condition, while maintaining lower fatigue, enabling researchers to separate the effects of exercise volume from the effects of fatigue.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Power Training at Different Fatigue Levels