Acute effects of different foam rolling volumes in the interset rest period on maximum repetition performance

Background

Foam rolling (FR) is a ubiquitous intervention utilised for the purpose of acutely increasing the range of motion without subsequent decreases in performance. Thus, it is commonly used during the periworkout period—that is, prior to, during, or after an athlete's workout.

Objective

This study investigated how different FR durations applied to the quadriceps during the interset rest periods affects the numbers of repetitions in the knee extension exercise.

Methods

Twenty-five females completed four sets of knee extensions with 10 repetitions of maximum load to concentric failure on four occasions. Between each set, a 4-minute rest interval was implemented in which participants either passively rested or performed FR for different durations (60 seconds, 90 seconds, and 120 seconds). The 95% confidence intervals revealed a dose-dependent relationship in which longer durations of FR resulted in fewer completed repetitions.

Results

On average, the number of repetitions with PR was 13.8% greater than that in FR120, 8.6% greater than that in FR90, and 9.1% greater than that in FR60.

Conclusion

For the purposes of performance and likely adaptation, interset FR seems to be detrimental to a person's ability to continually produce force, and should not be applied to the agonist muscle group between sets of knee extensions.