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Excerpt
To study the hormonal responses to different resistance exercise loading regimens across the ôstrength-endurance continuumö, 33 healthy men (X age=22.5 yrs.) performed the leg press, squat, and leg extension exercises for 8 weeks or served as untrained controls. Training groups consisted of a low repetition group (LR; n=9; 4 sets, 3-5 RM [repetition maximum], 3 min rest intervals), an intermediate repetition group (IR; n=11; 3 sets, 9-11 RM, 2 min rest intervals), and a high repetition group (HR; n=7; 2 sets, 22-26 RM, 1 min rest intervals). At the beginning (Test 1) and end (Test 2) of the study, serum samples were collected at 0700 hrs and pre- and 5 min post-exercise and were analyzed for total testosterone (TES), free testosterone (FTES), percent unbound TES, cortisol (CORT), TES/CORT, and FTES/CORT. Statistical analyses (p<.05) revealed that resting samples of TES (X±SE; nmol/L; Test 1=21.6±2.3, Test 2=25.4±5.9) and FTES (pmol/L; Test 1=299.3±31.1, Test 2=378.9±48.2) increased for the LR group, but decreased for the IR group (TES, Test 1=20.8±2.0, Test 2=17.6±1.9; FTES, Test 1=340.8±38.6, Test 2=282.2±22.4). No other resting hormonal variables were altered. Exercise samples indicated few exercise-induced hormonal changes except for a decrease in TES for the HR group at Test 2 (pre=25.0±3.8, post=20.6±3.2), and an increase in CORT for the IR group at Test 2 (nmol/L; pre=420±40, post=729±188). In general, all training groups exhibited higher concentrations of TES and CORT pre- and post-exercise at Test 2. Although all training groups increased strength, the LR group increased the most in 1 RM strength, while the HR group increased the most in muscular endurance (maximal repetitions at 60% 1 RM). In summary, each of the training groups displayed unique resting and exercise-induced hormonal profiles which are likely to contribute to the differential strength adaptations to such training.
