## 4 Discussion  
This study aimed to investigate the effects of two different conditioning activities (i.e., squat and ballistic jumps) on judo-specific performance (i.e., SJFT), handgrip strength, and RPE scores among young judo athletes. The findings suggest both squat and ballistic jumps as conditioning activities improved judo-specific performance, evidenced by the increased number of throws in set 2, total number of throws, and improved SJFT index compared to a control condition. In addition, squatting as a conditioning activity resulted in reduced handgrip strength of the right hand compared to ballistic jumps or control conditions. No significant difference was noted between squat and ballistic jump conditioning activities for other dependent variables. Compared to a control condition (i.e., judo specific warm-up), both squat and ballistic jumps as conditioning activities were effective in increasing the number of throws during set 2 and the total number of throws. In addition, both the conditioning activities improved the SJFT index compared to the control condition. These improvements may be attributed to the mechanism underlying the PAPE effect [5]. For example, increased muscle temperature, intramuscular fluid accumulation (i.e., muscle blood flow and/or water), decreased muscle pH, and increased neural drive (i.e., greater muscle activation) are the suggested mechanisms for the PAPE effect. In addition, the significant improvement in the number of throws after the ballistic jump exercise can be attributed to the enhanced motor efficiency during the execution of maximal effort repetitions in workouts [24]. The ballistic jump exercise is suggested to enhance the neural stimulation to a higher level because higher threshold motor units are recruited only when high power outputs are demanded [25]. Figure 2: Graphical representation of percentage difference between the conditioning activities (back squat and ballistic jumps) compared to the control condition (i.e., judo-specific warm-up). Note: Black bars—denote percentage difference between back squat versus control condition; grey bars—denote percentage difference between ballistic jumps versus control condition; positive bars depict the positive difference and negative bars depict the negative difference compared to the control condition; Throw 1, 2, 3—number of throws performed in sets 1, 2, and 3 of special judo fitness test (SFT); HR immediate—heart rate immediately after the SJFT, HR one-minute—heart rate one-minute after SJFT, HR peak—peak heart rate during the SJFT, RPE—rating of perceived exertion. These higher-order motor unit activations may have resulted in the heightened neural stimulation of muscle, thus augmenting power production [8]. Moreover, ballistic exercises are suggested to selectively activate the type II motor unit fibers [26], that underlie power production in athletes, which is essential during the performance of the throws during the SJFT. Indeed, ballistic exercise, when applied over a longitudinal period (i.e., training interventions), is associated with observed improvements in combat athletes' physical fitness performance [27]. Moreover, the results obtained in the current study are in line with previous studies that used ballistic exercises as conditioning activities on judo athletes [6; 7]. Improvements in throws and the SJFT index were reported after box jumps with incremental height (i.e., 20 cm to 40 cm to 60 cm) [7] as well as after standing broad jumps [6]. Furthermore, the improved performance in the SJFT after squatting as a conditioning activity may be attributed to mechanisms similar to that suggested for ballistic jump exercises (please read the previous paragraph). However, the current findings do not align with a previous study that includes squats as a conditioning activity [7]. [PERSON], [PERSON], and [PERSON] [7] used 5 repetitions of 95% 1 RM squats with a 2-minute rest between each repetition and reported no changes in SJFT performance compared to the control condition.