Abstract
The age-related decline in muscle function, particularly muscle power, is associated with increased risk of important clinical outcomes. Physical activity is an important determinant of muscle function, and different types of physical activity e.g. power-based versus endurance-based exercise appear to have differential effects on muscle power. Cross-sectional studies suggest that participation in power-based exercise is associated with greater muscle power across adulthood but this has not been investigated longitudinally. We recruited eighty-nine male and female power and endurance master athletes (sprint and distance runners respectively, baseline age 35–90y). Using jumping mechanography, we measured lower limb muscle function during a vertical jump including at least two testing sessions longitudinally over 4.5 ± 2.4y. We examined effects of time, discipline (power/endurance) and sex in addition to two- and three-way interactions using linear mixed-effects models. Peak relative power, relative force and jump height, but not Esslingen Fitness Index (indicating peak power relative to sex and age-matched reference data) declined with time. Peak power, force, height and EFI were greater in power than endurance athletes. There were no sex, discipline or sex*discipline interactions with time for any variable, suggesting that changes were similar over time for athletes of both sexes and disciplines. Advantages in lower limb muscle function in power athletes were maintained with time, in line with previous cross-sectional studies. These results suggest that improvements in lower limb function in less active older individuals following power-based training persist with continued adherence, although this requires further investigation in interventional studies.
Highlights
With increasing age the prevalence of low muscle mass, quality and function, known clinically as sarcopenia, increases dramatically and is associated with increased risk of multiple important clinical outcomes including functional decline, falls, hospitalisation and premature mortality [1]
Whilst sarcopenia was originally diagnosed based on assessment of muscle mass, muscle function measures have been shown to have greater predictive value for clinical outcomes in older adults [3, 4]
Male endurance runners were older than athletes in both power groups (P = 0.054 and 0.048 for males and females respectively, Table 1). Men in both groups were taller and heavier than women in both groups, and male power athletes were heavier than male endurance athletes (P = 0.004)
Summary
With increasing age the prevalence of low muscle mass, quality and function, known clinically as sarcopenia, increases dramatically and is associated with increased risk of multiple important clinical outcomes including functional decline, falls, hospitalisation and premature mortality [1]. Sarcopenia represents a substantial and growing burden to individuals and healthcare systems. Whilst sarcopenia was originally diagnosed based on assessment of muscle mass, muscle function measures have been shown to have greater predictive value for clinical outcomes in older adults [3, 4]. Recent guidelines recommend assessment of muscle function as the primary indicator of sarcopenia [5] but a single ‘gold standard’ measure has not been identified. The decline in muscle power seems to be (a) more consistent across study populations and measurement methods, and (b) greater than the decline in muscle size or muscle strength [7, 8]
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