Specificity of Heavy Work Fatigue: Absence of Transfer from Heavy Leg Work to Coordination Tasks Using the Arms

Abstract

Abstract Seventy university male undergraduates were given a series of motor coordination tests, and retested after an interval of 10 minutes. Half of the group rested during the 10 min. (control); the other half engaged in heavy muscular work to induce fatigue (600 step-ups on an 18-in. bench). It was expected that the fatigue would transfer to and impair motor coordination. Scores of the experimental and control groups were almost identical on the test before interpolated rest or exercise. They were also very nearly the same on the retest; in fact, the experimental (fatigued) groups did slightly but not significantly better than the controls. The interpolated heavy work did produce considerable fatigue, since the rate of work dropped off progressively during the 10 min. of exercise (F = 7.9 compared with 1.9 required for the .05 level of significance). However, this fatigue did not transfer to or impair reaction time or performance in the free-turning rho task, the friction rho task, or the pursuit roto...