Abstract:
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of two isotonic weight training methods on leg power, leg strength and leg speed as measured by the Margaria-Kalamen and Orthotron tests and the 40-yard dash respectively. Methods of Research: Twenty-seven football players were pre-tested for leg power, leg strength and leg speed. Fourteen subjects participated in three isotonic free weight exercises and thirteen subjects participated in three isotonic machine exercises. The subjects of each group completed five sets of five repetitions, one hour a day, two days per week for six weeks. Post-testing was administered to measure changes in leg power, leg strength and leg speed. The pre-and posttest scores from the Margaria-Kalamen, Orthotron, and 40-yard dash were utilized as the data which were analyzed by i-tests and analysis of variance with significance being accepted at the .05 level. Conclusions: Based on data presented, it can be concluded that isotonic machine weight training and isotonic free weight training methods using five sets of five repetitions, one hour a day, two days per week for six weeks produced no significant gains in mean leq power, leq strength and leq speed. Also, neither method of weight traininq proved to be significantly more effective than the other. This investigator's failure to induce a gain in strength, power and/or speed might have been from inadequate training stimulus and intensity.
