Finally , muscle power testing was found to be safe in older people with a broad range of health and functional states
Background Muscle power has been proposed to be the primary therapeutic target for resistance training interventions aim ed at enhancing physical function in older adults .
However , no recommendations exist on ideal testing protocol s to assess muscle power in older adults , and the safety of this procedure has not been adequately evaluated in the literature .
Methods A systematic review was conducted to identify studies evaluating muscle power exerted by older people in resistance exercises through May 2017 .
The effects of strength and power training on single-step balance recovery in older adults: a preliminary study
Improving muscle strength and power may mitigate the effects of sarcopenia , but it is unknown if this improves an older adult ’s ability to recover from a large postural perturbation . Forward tripping is prevalent in older adults and lateral falls are important due to risk of hip fracture . We used a forward and a lateral single-step balance recovery task to examine the effects of strength training ( ST ) or power ( PT ) training on single-step balance recovery in older adults . Twenty older adults ( 70.8±4.4 years , eleven male ) were r and omly assigned to either a 6-week ( three times/week ) lower extremity ST or PT intervention . Maximum forward ( FLeanmax ) and lateral ( LLeanmax ) lean angle and strength and power in knee extension and leg press were assessed at baseline and follow-up . Fifteen participants completed the study ( ST = 7 , PT = 8) . Least squares means ( 95 % CI ) for ΔFLeanmax ( ST : + 4.1 ° [ 0.7 , 7.5 ] ; PT : + 0.6 ° [ −2.5 , 3.8 ] ) and ΔLLeanmax ( ST : + 2.2 ° [ 0.4 , 4.1 ] ; PT : + 2.6 ° [ 0.9 , 4.4 ] ) indicated no differences between groups following training . In exploratory post hoc analyses collapsed by group , ΔFLeanmax was + 2.4 ° ( 0.1 , 4.7 ) and ΔLLeanmax was + 2.4 ° ( 1.2 , 3.6 ) . These improvements on the balance recovery tasks ranged from ~15%–30 % . The results of this preliminary study suggest that resistance training  may improve balance recovery performance , and that , in this small sample , PT did not lead to larger improvements in single-step balance recovery compared to ST
Finally , muscle power testing was found to be safe in older people with a broad range of health and functional states
Background Muscle power has been proposed to be the primary therapeutic target for resistance training interventions aim ed at enhancing physical function in older adults .
However , no recommendations exist on ideal testing protocol s to assess muscle power in older adults , and the safety of this procedure has not been adequately evaluated in the literature .
Methods A systematic review was conducted to identify studies evaluating muscle power exerted by older people in resistance exercises through May 2017 .