Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to compare measurements of muscle strength, size, and activation of the forearm flexors in pre- and post-pubescent males and females.
Methods
Forty pre-pubescent (mean ± 95% confidence interval, age = 9.79 ± 0.35 years, n = 10 males, n = 10 females) and post-pubescent (age = 17.23 ± 0.58 years, n = 10 males, n = 10 females) youth participated. Subjects completed maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVICs) of the forearm flexors, and submaximal isometric step muscle actions at 30, 50, and 70% of the peak MVIC. Percent voluntary activation (VA) was quantified during all isometric muscle actions. Forearm flexor (biceps brachii and brachialis) muscle cross-sectional area (CSA) was quantified from ultrasound images.
Results
MVIC strength was expressed in absolute terms and normalized to CSA. Post-pubertal males were 130% stronger, had 101% greater CSA, and 17% greater maximal VA than pre-pubertal males, while post-pubertal females were 72% stronger, had 54% greater CSA, and 23% greater maximal VA than pre-pubertal females. When MVIC strength was normalized to CSA, the post-pubertal males were still 15% stronger than the pre-pubertal males, while the post-pubertal females were only 12% stronger than the pre-pubertal females. The responses for VA across intensity reflected differences in muscle activation strategies between pre- and post-pubertal males and females.
Conclusion
These results suggest that muscle size may account for a greater proportion of the growth and development-related differences in strength among males, while females may be more affected by changes in muscle activation. Regardless of sex, changes in muscle size and neuromuscular function influence strength increases during growth and development.
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Availability of data and material
The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Code availability
The custom-written software of this study is available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Abbreviations
- ANOVA:
-
Analysis of variance
- BF%:
-
Percent body fat
- CSA:
-
Cross-sectional area
- FFM:
-
Fat-free mass
- MVIC:
-
Maximum voluntary isometric contraction
- PAR-Q:
-
Physical activity readiness questionnaire
- VA:
-
Voluntary activation
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Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the National Strength and Conditioning Association, the University of Nebraska Agriculture Research Division, and Abbott Nutrition for funding this study. We would also like to thank Nicholas Bohannon and Sydney Gibson for their help conducting the study, as well as each of the subjects for their participation.
Funding
Efforts for this study were funded, in part, by a National Strength and Conditioning Association Foundation (NSCAF) Graduate Research Doctoral Grant, the University of Nebraska Agriculture Research Division with funds provided by the Hatch Act (Agency: U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture; Accession No: 1000080; Project No: NEB-36-078), and a grant from Abbott Nutrition, Columbus, OH.
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ZMG was a substantial contributor to the study concept and design, carried out data acquisition, analysis, and interpretation, and wrote the manuscript. TJH, RJS, TJH, and RJDA contributed to the study concept and design, and manuscript revision. MES contributed to data acquisition and manuscript revision. JTC was the primary manuscript reviser and a substantial contributor to the study concept, design, and interpretation. All authors provided critical feedback and approved the final version of the manuscript. All persons designated as authors qualify for authorship, and all those who qualify for authorship are listed. All the authors agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.
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The authors have no conflicts of interest to report.
Ethical approval
This study was approved by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) for the protection of human subjects (IRB Approval #: 20190719446FB, Title: Muscle Strength, Size, and Neuromuscular Function in Pre-pubescent and Post-pubescent Boys and Girls).
Informed consent
Before any data collection, pre-pubescent subjects signed an approved child assent form, while post-pubescent subjects signed an approved youth assent form, and one parent or legal guardian signed an approved parental consent form. Each subject, with the assistance from their parent or legal guardian, completed the PAR-Q + 2015 and was included in this study if questions 1–7 were answered “no” or all of the follow-up questions of the PAR-Q + 2015 were answered “no.”
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Communicated by William J. Kraemer.
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Gillen, Z.M., Housh, T.J., Schmidt, R.J. et al. Comparisons of muscle strength, size, and voluntary activation in pre- and post-pubescent males and females. Eur J Appl Physiol 121, 2487–2497 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-021-04717-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-021-04717-1