Resumen de Effects of Active Warm-up and Diurnal Increase in Temperature on Muscular Power

Stephen Blonc, Olivier Hu, Sébastien Racinais

• Purpose: To investigate the effects of both an active warm-up (AWU) and the diurnal increase in body temperature on muscular power.

  Methods: Eight male subjects performed maximal cycling sprints in the morning (7:00-9:00 a.m.) and afternoon (5:00-7:00 p.m.) either after an AWU or in a control condition. The AWU consisted of 12 min of pedaling at 50% of [latin capital V with dot above]O2max interspersed with three brief accelerations of 5 s.

  Results: Rectal temperature, maximal force developed during the cycling sprint, and muscular power were higher in the afternoon than in the morning (P < 0.05). Rectal temperature, calculated muscular temperature, and muscular power were higher after AWU than in control condition (P < 0.05).

  Conclusions: The beneficial effect of an AWU can be combined with that of the diurnal increase in central temperature to improve muscular power