Clinical trial NCT06982937: A Mechanistic Perspective on Post-Activation Performance Enhancement Responsiveness: A Randomized Controlled Study of Acute Changes in Muscle Architecture, Contractile Property Kinetics, and Muscle Excitability
Official title: A Mechanistic Perspective on Post-Activation Performance Enhancement Responsiveness: A Randomized Controlled Study of Acute Changes in Muscle Architecture, Contractile Property Kinetics, and Muscle Excitability
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: ENROLLING_BY_INVITATION
Phase: NA
Conditions: Neuromuscular Function
Muscle Activation
Postactivation Potentiation
Ultrasonography
Tensiomyography
Contraction
MHC-I
Keywords: MHC-I
Tensiomyography
Ulstrasonography
Electromyogpraphy
Postactivation potentiation
PAPE
Lead sponsor: The Jerzy Kukuczka Academy of Physical Education in Katowice
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2025-05-21
Enrollment: 44
Sex: MALE
Minimum age (years): 18
Maximum age (years): 23
Standard ages: ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: BASIC_SCIENCE

Brief summary: The goal of this study is to find out if one short set of heavy half-squats can help football players jump higher right away-and to understand what happens inside their muscles and nerves to make that boost happen.

Key questions

* Will performing 2-3 half-squats at 90% of one-rep max give a bigger jump boost than jogging on a treadmill for five minutes?
* After each warm-up, how do muscle speed and stiffness, muscle size and fiber angle, and nerve signals change over the next 12 minutes?
* Does each player's contribution of fast and slow muscle fibers affect how much and how long their jump improves?

Study Plan Researches will invite 44 healthy football players, ages 18-21, who train regularly and meet our health rules. No one will know which warm-up each player does until the end.

Participants will:

* Get baseline tests of jump height, muscle speed and stiffness (using a harmless electrical sensor), muscle size and fiber angle (using ultrasound), and nerve signals (using sticky pads on the skin).
* Be randomly assigned to either:

  1. Heavy-squat group: 2-3 half-squats at 90% of their one-rep max
  2. Jogging group: easy jog or walk on a treadmill for five minutes
* Repeat all tests right after the warm-up and again at 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 minutes to see how jump height and all muscle and nerve measures change over time.
* Have their muscle fiber mix estimated from the first muscle-speed test to see if fiber type explains who gets the biggest jump boost.

All tests are safe, painless, and approved by an ethics board. Players can stop at any time without giving a reason. This study will help athletes and coaches choose the best warm-up to get stronger, faster jumps right before a game or practice.


Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Male football players aged 18-23 years
* Minimum of 3 structured training sessions per week for the past 6 months
* No history of lower-limb musculoskeletal injuries (e.g., ligament sprain, muscle tear) within the past 2 months
* No diagnosed dermatological conditions affecting electrode placement (e.g., psoriasis, eczema)
* No cardiovascular disease (e.g., hypertension, arrhythmia)
* No neuromuscular disorders (e.g., neuropathy, myopathy) on clinical examination
* Able to complete a 1RM half-squat protocol and countermovement jump without pain

Exclusion Criteria:

* Use of performance-enhancing supplements/medications within 2 weeks prior to enrollment
* Missed more than 4 scheduled training sessions per month over the past 2 months
* Blood pressure \>140/90 mmHg at rest or resting heart rate \>90 bpm
* Any contraindication to electrical stimulation (e.g., pacemaker, implanted metal device)
* Failure to provide written informed consent or withdrawal of consent at any time

Primary outcomes:
measure: Change from Baseline in Mean Countermovement Jump Height from 4 to 12 Minutes Post-Intervention
timeFrame: Baseline and 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 minutes post-intervention (single session)
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Change from Baseline in Contractile Properties of the Vastus Lateralis at 6, and 12 Minutes Post-Intervention
timeFrame: Baseline and 6 and 12 minutes post-intervention (single session)
measure: Change from Baseline in Muscle Architecture of the Vastus Lateralis at 6 and 12 Minutes Post-Intervention
timeFrame: Baseline and 6 and 12 minutes post-intervention (single session)
measure: Change from Baseline in Mean Vastus Lateralis EMG %MVC During CMJ at 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 Minutes Post-Intervention
timeFrame: Baseline and 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 minutes post-intervention (single session)
measure: Predicted Percentage of Type I Myosin Heavy Chain Fibers from Baseline Tensiomyography
timeFrame: Calculation after final data collection
measure: Pearson's correlation coefficient (r) quantifying the relationship between each participant's estimated percentage of MHC-I fibers (from baseline tensiomyography regression models) and their change in countermovement jump height (ΔCMJ, in cm).
timeFrame: 4 minutes, 6 minutes, 8 minutes, 10 minutes, and 12 minutes post-intervention
measure: Pearson's r between baseline mechanistic variables (TMG Td/Tc/Tr/Ts/Dm; USG thickness/pennation; EMG %MVC) and ΔCMJ (cm)
timeFrame: 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 minutes post-intervention
measure: Indirect effect (a×b) estimating how much acute change in each mechanistic variable mediates the effect of the conditioning activity on ΔCMJ (cm)
timeFrame: 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 minutes post-intervention
measure: Mean difference in ΔCMJ (cm) between participants in the upper versus lower tertile of each baseline mechanistic variable (TMG Td/Tc/Tr/Ts/Dm; USG muscle thickness/pennation angle; EMG %MVC)
timeFrame: 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 minutes post-intervention
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Katowice
country: Poland
facility: The Jerzy Kukuczka Academy of Physical Education in Katowice
state: Silesia
Study officials:
References:
citation: Simunic B, Degens H, Rittweger J, Narici M, Mekjavic IB, Pisot R. Noninvasive estimation of myosin heavy chain composition in human skeletal muscle. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2011 Sep;43(9):1619-25. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0b013e31821522d0.