ARTICLE
Postactivation Potentiation: Role in Human
Performance
Digby G. Sale
Department of Kinesiology, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Downloaded from http://journals.lww.com/acsm-essr by BhDMf5ePHKav1zEoum1tQfN4a+kJLhEZgbsIHo4XMi0hCywCX1AWnYQp/IlQrHD3i3D0OdRyi7TvSFl4Cf3VC1y0abggQZXdgGj2MwlZLeI= on 01/01/2021
SALE, D.G. Postactivation potentiation: Role in human performance. Exerc. Sport Sci. Rev., Vol. 30, No. 3, pp. 138 –143,
2002. Postactivation potentiation (PAP) is the transient increase in muscle contractile performance after previous contractile activity.
This review describes the features and mechanism of PAP, assesses its potential role in endurance and strength/speed performance,
considers strategies for exploiting PAP, and outlines how PAP might be affected by training. Keywords: postactivation
potentiation, skeletal muscle, contractile properties, muscle endurance, muscle strength, training
INTRODUCTION
At any point in time, the performance of skeletal muscle
is affected by its contractile history. The most obvious effect
of contractile history is fatigue, which impairs performance.
This review is about another effect of contractile history—
postactivation potentiation (PAP). In contrast to fatigue,
PAP serves to improve performance. The phenomenon of
PAP and its mechanism(s) have been studied for many years,
but its application to human performance has received less
study. The purpose of the review is to consider the possible
roles of PAP in human performance and, in particular, to
discuss the hypothesis that PAP may offset fatigue in endur-
ance exercise, increase rate of force development, and, thus,
improve speed and power performance.
PAP is an increase in muscle twitch and low-frequency
tetanic force after a “conditioning” contractile activity. In
research on PAP, the conditioning activity (or contractile
history) most commonly includes a series of evoked twitches
(staircase or treppe), an evoked tetanic contraction (postte-
tanic potentiation (PTP)), or a sustained maximal voluntary
contraction (MVC). In this review, potentiation, no matter
how induced, will be referred to as PAP. An example of PAP
is shown in Figure 1. The principal mechanism of PAP is
considered to be phosphorylation of myosin regulatory light
chains, which renders actin-myosin interaction more sensi-
tive to Ca2⫹ released from the sarcoplasmic reticulum
Address for correspondence: Digby G. Sale, Ph.D., Department of Kinesiology, McMaster
University, Hamilton, Ontario, L8S 4K1, Canada. (E-mail: saled@mcmaster.ca).
Accepted for publication: March 18, 2002.
0091-6631/3003/138 –143
Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews
Copyright © 2002 by the American College of Sports Medicine
138
(12,13). Increased sensitivity to Ca2⫹ has its greatest effect at
low myoplasmic levels of Ca2⫹, as occurs in twitch and
low-frequency tetanic contractions; in contrast, increased
sensitivity to Ca2⫹ has little or no effect at saturating Ca2⫹
levels, as occurs in high-frequency tetanic contractions.
Thus, PAP “raises” the low- but not high-frequency portion
of the force-frequency relation (1,14). In fact, the condition-
ing activity (e.g., 10-s MVC) can, concurrently, increase
(due to PAP) and decrease (due to fatigue) low- and high-
frequency force, respectively ((12); Fig. 2).
CONTRACTION TYPE
Most studies of PAP and the force-frequency relation have
involved isometric contractions. It is important to recognize
that the type of muscle contraction affects both the force-
frequency relation and the range of frequencies over which
PAP occurs. In concentric contractions, especially those at
higher velocities, the force-frequency relation is shifted to
the right compared with isometric contractions; that is,
higher frequencies are needed to evoke a given percentage of
maximum force (1). In addition, PAP extends to higher
frequencies in concentric versus isometric contractions (1).
Most activities involve primarily concentric (e.g., swimming,
rowing, cycling) or coupled eccentric-concentric contrac-
tions (e.g., running, jumping, weightlifting); therefore, PAP
may have a performance-enhancing effect beyond what
would be expected based on its effect on isometric contrac-
tions. The interaction between the force-frequency relation,
PAP, and contraction type is illustrated in Figure 3. Note the
potentially greater role of PAP in concentric compared with
isometric contractions.

Figure 1. An example of postactivation potentiation (PAP). First, a
baseline twitch is evoked in a muscle that has been at rest for some time.
Then, a conditioning contraction, such as an electrically evoked tetanic
contraction or a maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) is done. A twitch
contraction evoked soon after the conditioning contraction shows the
increased force and shortened time course typical of PAP. For an example
of actual twitch recordings, see (7).
FIBER TYPE
A notable feature of PAP is that it is greater in fast, Type II
muscle fibers because fast fibers undergo greater phosphorylation
of myosin regulatory light chains in response to a conditioning
activity (13). Accordingly, muscles with a higher percentage of
Type II fibers (e.g., gastrocnemius vs soleus), and people with a
higher percentage of Type II fibers within a muscle (e.g., vastus
lateralis, (7)), exhibit greater PAP. A person’s fiber-type distri-
bution is determined primarily by genetic factors, but may also
be influenced by age and activity level.
It might be expected that PAP offers the greatest potential
for performance enhancement in brief, maximal intensity
activities requiring maximal strength and speed (and the
product of these two, power), activities that depend on fast
fibers. But in these activities, motor unit firing rates are likely
to be at their highest, in the very range where PAP’s effect on
force is smallest or absent. Taken in this light, greater PAP in
fast fibers almost seems a “waste.” It would be better for slow
fibers to have greater PAP, because they are typically in-
volved in low-intensity activities in which motor unit firing
rates are relatively low, the range in which PAP is greatest.
However, it will be shown later that PAP has another effect
on muscle (in addition to increasing force), an effect that is
beneficial for speed and power performance, even when mo-
tor units are firing at high rates. This beneficial effect is also
most pronounced in fast fibers.
ENDURANCE PERFORMANCE
Endurance performance typically consists of submaximal
contractions that are repeated for prolonged periods. From
the beginning of performance the contractions themselves
would activate the mechanism(s) responsible for PAP (12).
Because, in these submaximal contractions, the recruited
Volume 30 䡠 Number 3 䡠 July 2002
motor units would be discharging at relatively low rates, the
force output of the motor units should be increased by PAP
(Fig. 2). If this happens, and if a constant force has to be
maintained, motor unit firing rates would have to decrease to
compensate for the increased force (or alternatively, some
motor units could be derecruited). In fact, motor units have
been observed to decrease their firing rates in sustained,
constant force, submaximal contractions without altered mo-
tor unit recruitment (2). A decrease in motor unit firing rate,
by reducing the number of nerve impulses and muscle action
potentials per unit time, may delay impairment of “central
drive” to motoneurons, neuromuscular transmission, muscle
action potential propagation, and excitation-contraction
coupling, all possible sites and mechanisms of fatigue. It
should be noted that, as fatigue develops in sustained sub-
maximal contractions, motor units already recruited will
eventually have to increase their firing rates to compensate
for fatigue, and depending on the exercise intensity and the
muscle group, additional motor units will be recruited.
PAP may have a special role in compensating for the
impaired excitation-contraction coupling that occurs with
fatigue. Impaired excitation-contraction coupling is respon-
sible for low-frequency fatigue (LFF), a disproportionate loss
of low-frequency tetanic force (12). This is the exact opposite
of PAP, which is a disproportionate increase in low-frequency
tetanic force. Thus, PAP can serve to compensate for LFF.
Many endurance activities (e.g., running, cycling, swim-
ming) consist of repeated brief concentric or eccentric-con-
centric actions in which motor units discharge briefly at fairly
high rates; however, it should be recalled from Figure 3 that
in concentric (vs isometric) actions, the force-frequency re-
lation is shifted to the right, extending the frequency range
over which both LFF and PAP would be acting.
In contrast, PAP cannot compensate for so-called high-
frequency fatigue, the force decline when motor units are
Figure 2. Effect of PAP on the isometric force-frequency relation. Force
increases and then plateaus as the frequency of stimulation increases
(solid line). After a conditioning activity, the induced PAP (dashed line)
increases low- but not high-frequency tetanic force. The conditioning
activity may, by causing fatigue, actually decrease high-frequency
force, as shown. See text for references on which this schematic figure
is based.
Postactivation Potentiation 139
 within the range affected by PAP.) An athlete might also
experience this transition from initial fatigue to “feeling better”
during a training session, if LFF has persisted from the previous
training session. It would be of interest to monitor both LFF and
PAP in endurance athletes during a training program.

STRENGTH AND SPEED PERFORMANCE

Strength and speed performance typically require, in a

brief maximal effort, that all relevant motor units be re-
cruited and fire at maximum possible rates. It would appear,
with reference to Figure 3, that PAP could offer little benefit
when motor units are discharging at very high rates, because
PAP cannot increase high-frequency force. Furthermore,
PAP does not increase maximum unresisted shortening ve-
locity (for review, see (4)). Therefore, with reference to the
force (load)-velocity relation, the two extremes of this rela-
Figure 3. Effect of contraction type on the force-frequency relation
and range of frequency over which PAP extends. An isometric and a “fast”
tion, peak isometric force and maximum shortening velocity
concentric contraction condition are compared. A higher frequency is (Vmax), cannot be altered by PAP (Fig. 5). However, PAP
required to attain the plateau or peak force (solid lines) in the concentric has an additional effect; it can increase rate of force devel-
contraction. Also, PAP induced by a conditioning activity (dashed line) opment, even at very high stimulation frequencies where
extends to a higher frequency in the concentric contraction. Note that the force is not increased by PAP ((1,14); Fig. 6).
maximum isometric force is greater than the maximum concentric force,
in accordance with the force-velocity relation. Also, in this example, fa-
The effect of PAP on rate of force development raises the
tigue produced by the conditioning activity caused a decrease in high- prospect that PAP may, by increasing rate of force develop-
frequency force (see also Fig. 1 and (1)). ment and hence the acceleration attained with loads be-
tween zero (Vmax) and peak isometric force, increase the
velocity attained with these loads. Thus, PAP would shift the
firing at very high rates, because PAP cannot increase high- load (force)-velocity relation upward and rightward (making
frequency force ((12); Fig. 2 and 3). Thus, in fatiguing
exercise, low-frequency force can increase or be maintained
(by PAP) at the same time as high-frequency force is de-
creasing (Fig. 4). With reference to Figure 4, a scenario in an
endurance event can be imagined in which an athlete is
faring well while maintaining a steady submaximal pace,
because of the beneficial effect of PAP. However, if the
intensity must be increased (hill climb, strategic pace in-
crease, etc.), with the accompanying high motor unit firing
rates, the situation would be as shown by the vertical dashed
line in Figure 4. By changing from low to high motor unit
firing rates, the beneficial effect of PAP would be lost and the
full effect of fatigue would be felt.
During recovery after fatiguing endurance exercise, PAP
decays within minutes whereas LFF can persist for at least
several hours, if not days (12). The prolonged depression of
low-frequency force may partly explain the “dead” leg com-
plaint of endurance athletes during a period of high-volume
training. From rest, when the athlete begins to do “easy” daily
activities such as walking and climbing a flight of stairs, the
leg muscles feel weak and are weak in response to the low
motor unit firing normally employed to generate the required
force. Faced with the LFF force deficit, central drive to the Figure 4. Changes in low- and high-frequency force capability during
endurance exercise. As exercise proceeds, the mechanisms of PAP and
motoneurons must increase to recruit more motor units and fatigue are developing simultaneously, the former enhancing low-fre-
to increase the firing rate of those already active, to com- quency force and the latter depressing high-frequency force. If the motor
pensate for the deficit. The athlete perceives this neural units are firing at the low rates typical of the submaximal contractions in
adjustment as increased effort. Perhaps surprising to the ath- endurance exercise, the PAP benefit should prevail, at least for a time, over
lete, when the activity has been underway for a short time, it the fatigue disadvantage. If, however, the intensity of exercise must be
increased (e.g., hill climb), necessitating high-frequency firing of motor
begins to feel easier. The explanation for this is that the units, the balance between force enhancement and depression will be
activity has reactivated PAP, offsetting the effect of LFF. altered to a predominance of depression (fatigue), as represented by the
(This explanation assumes that motor unit firing rates are still vertical dashed line in the figure.

140 Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews www.acsm-essr.org


Figure 5. Hypothesized effect of PAP on the load (force)-velocity rela-
tion. PAP cannot increase maximum isometric force (Po) or maximum
shortening velocity (Vmax), because Po and Vmax are determined with high-
frequency stimulation. In contrast, PAP can increase rate of force devel-
opment at high frequencies (see Fig. 6), an effect that may increase the
acceleration and hence velocity attained with loads intermediate between
the extremes of Po and Vmax. If this were to occur, the load-velocity relation
would become less concave, i.e., shifted upward and to the right.
it less concave) without changing the endpoints, as depicted
in Figure 5. If this were to happen, activities like jumping,
kicking, and throwing might be improved if the muscles were
in a state of PAP. There are reports of improved (5,11,15)
and unaffected (4,9,10) performance of this nature after a
conditioning activity such as isometric MVCs or a set of
repetitions with a heavy weight. The inconsistent results of
the studies could be the result of variation in the performance
to be improved, the conditioning activity, and the time
interval between the conditioning activity and the perfor-
mance. In only two studies (4,10) was the presence or ab-
sence of PAP monitored. The selection of the conditioning
activity and the interval between it and performance are part
of the strategy for exploiting PAP (see next section).
In experiments with the muscle of a small mammal (rat
gastrocnemius), PAP was shown to increase the force and power
of isovelocity concentric contractions, particularly at the higher
velocities tested (up to ~70% of Vmax). PAP did not increase
isometric rate of force development or concentric force at the
highest stimulation frequency used (1), indicating that, like
isometric force, there is a limit (albeit higher than for isometric
force) to the stimulation frequency at which PAP can have an
enhancing effect on rate of force development. Whether this
limit is reached with the motor unit firing rates attained in
human performance is presently unknown.
STRATEGIES FOR EXPLOITING POSTACTIVATION
POTENTIATION (PAP)
In exploiting PAP to enhance performance, two dilemmas
must be resolved. First, a more intense and prolonged con-
Volume 30 䡠 Number 3 䡠 July 2002
ditioning activity may activate the PAP mechanism to a
greater extent, but it also produces greater fatigue (Fig. 7).
The second dilemma, also illustrated in Figure 7, is that the
longer the recovery period between the end of the condi-
tioning activity and the beginning of performance, the
greater the recovery from fatigue, but also the greater the
decay of the PAP mechanism.
The two dilemmas can be resolved only by trial and error.
In one study (4), the recovery period chosen was only 15 s,
so that performance would begin when PAP (assessed by the
force of twitch contraction) was still near its maximum (see
Fig. 7). However, performance (velocity attained with a
given load in concentric knee extension) was actually de-
pressed because of fatigue induced by the conditioning ac-
tivity (10-s isometric MVC). This was another example of
low-frequency (isometric) force being increased at the same
time as high-frequency (concentric) force was depressed. If a
longer recovery period had been selected, say 3 min, perfor-
mance may have been improved, provided that fatigue had
dissipated at a faster rate than PAP had decayed (Fig. 7).
There is some evidence that this is what happens when
longer recovery periods are used (3,5,15).
An additional consideration is that when the performance
is a series of contractions, the contractions themselves have
a cumulative effect in mobilizing the PAP mechanism (4,10).
This may partly explain the progressive increase in perfor-
mance observed in a series of jumps (5) or dynamic knee
extensions (4,10). It has also been shown that the effects of
a conditioning activity and repeated performance have an
additive effect on the magnitude of PAP, at least over a few
repetitions of the performance (4,10). In fact, if the perfor-
mance consists of enough trials, the PAP induced by the
trials themselves may rival that of the conditioning activity,
Figure 6. Comparison of effect of PAP on isometric force and rate of
force development of twitch and high-frequency tetanic contractions.
PAP increases both the rate of force development and the peak force of
twitch and low-frequency tetanic contractions (the latter not shown), but
only the rate of force development of the high-frequency tetanic contrac-
tion is increased. This latter effect may alter the shape of the load-
velocity relation (see Fig. 5) and potentially enhance strength and
speed performance.
Postactivation Potentiation 141

Figure 7. Strategy for exploiting PAP to improve strength/speed per-
formance. The conditioning activity activates PAP, monitored as the
change in twitch force, and induces fatigue, monitored as the change in
high-frequency tetanic force. Strength/speed performance (e.g., vertical
jump), also involving high-frequency motor unit firing rates, would there-
fore be depressed immediately after the conditioning activity, despite the
presence of PAP. However, if fatigue dissipates faster than PAP decays, as
illustrated, performance will transiently (optimal recovery time) exceed the
best performance before the conditioning activity (Pre). The optimal re-
covery time is determined by trial and error, taking into account factors
such as the performance to be enhanced, the nature of the conditioning
activity, and the fiber-type composition and training status of the subjects.
making the latter unnecessary (10). Again, all of this has to
be sorted out by trial and error experiments.
The emphasis has been on strategies for exploiting PAP in
strength/speed performance. For endurance performance, the
optimal strategy may be simply to begin the event. PAP will
be quickly induced by the first several contractions. It might
be argued, however, that preliminary (conditioning) “warm-
up” activity, apart from other possible benefits, would allow
the athlete to benefit from PAP at the beginning of the
event. As in strength and speed performance, a balance has
to be struck between the PAP and any fatigue induced by the
conditioning activity.
EFFECT OF TRAINING ON PAP
Some adaptations to strength training could possibly in-
crease PAP induced by a conditioning activity such as a 10-s
MVC. One adaptation would be increased ability to activate,
during the conditioning activity, the high threshold, fast
motor units, whose muscle fibers exhibit the greatest PAP.
Because the magnitude of PAP is dependent on the extent of
activation in the conditioning activity, greater activation
(recruitment and increased stimulation rate) of these fibers
would contribute to greater PAP in the whole muscle. A
second adaptation is the preferential hypertrophy of fast
versus slow muscle fibers commonly observed with strength
training. If, after training, fast fibers comprise a larger pro-
142 Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews
portion of the whole muscle, and PAP is greater in fast fibers,
PAP of the muscle as a whole would be expected to increase.
A third possible adaptation would be increased capacity for
PAP, brought about by altered myosin light chain composi-
tion (see discussion of endurance training below). As a spe-
cific example, the regular performance of jumping drills
might improve jump performance in repeated jumps as a
result of increased PAP from the adaptations outlined. Of the
few longitudinal training studies done to date (for review, see
(6)), only one showed an increase in PAP, after 12 wk of
weight training in elderly subjects (8). In the one cross-
sectional study, PAP was greater in recreational weight train-
ers than sedentary subjects (6). When an increase in PAP has
been observed, the adaptation responsible for the increase
has not been identified.
In contrast to strength training, endurance training is
likely neither to increase the ability to activate high thresh-
old fast motor units in brief maximal contractions, nor to
cause preferential hypertrophy of fast twitch fibers. Never-
theless, the one published study related to endurance training
found PAP, induced by a 10-s isometric MVC, to be greater
in endurance athletes than sedentary control subjects. The
enhanced PAP was only present in the trained muscles,
pointing to a training adaptation rather than a genetic trait
(6). In addition to the absence of adaptations that might
increase PAP as a result of strength training, the endurance
athletes likely possessed a greater than average percentage of
slow twitch fibers, which would promote reduced rather than
amplified PAP.
What adaptations could account for the increased PAP in
the endurance athletes? One adaptation would be increased
fatigue resistance, which would allow PAP to prevail over
Figure 8. Hypothetical effect of combined strength and endurance
training on PAP, as revealed by a fatigue test consisting of a series of brief
maximal voluntary contractions (MVCs). Twitch contractions evoked in
the intervals between the MVCs monitor the interaction between two
opposing effects—PAP and fatigue. After training, the greater twitch
force early in the test may reflect mainly adaptations to strength training,
whereas later in the test and during recovery, adaptations to endurance
training may play an increasing role. There is some evidence in support of
the effect illustrated during the test (8). During the fatigue test, MVC
force, unlike twitch force, would have steadily declined (see Fig. 4), but
perhaps not as much after training (not shown in the figure).
www.acsm-essr.org
fatigue immediately after the conditioning activity. In fact, in
the study cited above (6), the endurance athletes suffered less
fatigue during the 10-s MVC used to induce PAP. A second
possible adaptation is an increase in the content of “fast”
myosin light chains in Type I fibers (for review, see (6)),
which might increase the capacity for myosin light chain
phosphorylation, the principal mechanism of PAP. The sig-
nificance of this adaptation, if it occurs, is that the capacity
for PAP has been increased, whereas the other possible
adaptations described in response to strength or endurance
training act by increasing activation of an existing capacity
for PAP by a conditioning activity (increased motor unit
activation), increasing the proportion of the muscle occupied
by fast fibers (which produce the greatest PAP), or by allow-
ing the PAP mechanism to dominate over fatigue (increased
fatigue resistance). Figure 8 is a schematic showing how PAP
might increase after combined strength and endurance train-
ing. Throughout the test depicted in Figure 8, all adaptations
previously discussed may have contributed to the increased
PAP, although increased fatigue resistance would have
played a relatively greater role as the test progressed. For a
specific sport example, the increased PAP from strength
training may enhance acceleration at the start and during
sprint phases of a cross-country ski event, whereas the in-
creased PAP from endurance training may improve efficiency
by reducing the motor unit firing rates needed to maintain a
competitive pace.
CONCLUSION
PAP and its mechanism(s) have been studied for many
years, but their application to human performance has re-
ceived less study. There is some evidence that PAP can
improve high-velocity strength and power performance, but
more research is needed to determine the best strategy for
exploiting PAP. Theoretically, it can be imagined how PAP
could enhance endurance performance, but again, more re-
search is needed to clarify PAP’s role. The few studies to date
suggest that both strength or endurance training may in-
crease PAP, but the extent of increase and the responsible
adaptations await further study. Finally, research on PAP
must also consider other effects of contractile history. For
example, an increase in muscle temperature would, by in-
creasing rate of force development, act synergistically with
Volume 30 䡠 Number 3 䡠 July 2002
PAP to improve power performance. On the other hand,
increased temperature shortens twitch duration and therefore
shifts the force-frequency relation to the right, an effect
opposite to that of PAP. Thus, PAP’s possible enhancement
of endurance performance would be opposed by increased
muscle temperature.
References
1. Abbate, F.A., A.J. Sargeant, P.W. Verdijk, and A. de Haan. Effects of
high-frequency initial pulses and posttetanic potentiation on power
output of skeletal muscle. J. Appl. Physiol. 88:35– 40, 2000.
2. DeLuca, C.J., P.J. Foley, and Z. Erim. Motor unit control properties in
constant-force isometric contractions. J. Neurophysiol. 76:1503–1516,
1996.
3. Gilbert, G., A. Lees, and P. Graham-Smith. Temporal profile of post-
tetanic potentiation of muscle force characteristics after repeated max-
imal exercise. J. Sport Sci. 19:6, 2001.
4. Gossen, E.R., and D.G. Sale. Effect of postactivation potentiation on
dynamic knee extension performance. Eur. J. Appl. Physiol. 83:524 –
530, 2000.
5. Güllich, A., and D. Schmidtbleicher. Short-term potentiation of power
performance induced by maximal voluntary contractions. XVth Congress
of the Int. Soc. of Biomechanics. 348 –349:1995.
6. Hamada, T., D.G. Sale, and J. D. MacDougall. Postactivation potenti-
ation in endurance-trained male athletes. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc. 32:
403– 411, 2000.
7. Hamada, T., D.G. Sale, J.D. MacDougall, and M.A. Tarnopolsky.
Postactivation potentiation, fiber type, and twitch contraction time in
human knee extensor muscles. J. Appl. Physiol. 88:2131–2137, 2000.
8. Hicks, A.L., C.M. Cupido, J. Martin, and J. Dent. Twitch potentiation
during fatiguing exercise in the elderly: the effects of training. Eur.
J. Appl. Physiol. 63:278 –281, 1991.
9. Hrysomallis, C., and D. Kidgell. Effect of heavy dynamic resistive
exercise on acute upper-body power. J. Strength Cond. Res. 15:426 – 430,
2001.
10. Hughes, S.C., E.R. Gossen, and D.G. Sale. Effect of postactivation
potentiation on dynamic knee extension performance. Can. J. Appl.
Physiol. 26:486, 2001.
11. Radcliffe, J.C., and J.L. Radcliffe. Effects of different warm-up protocols
on peak power output during a single response jump task. Med. Sci.
Sports Exerc. 28:S29, 1996.
12. Rassier, D.E., and B.R. MacIntosh. Coexistence of potentiation and
fatigue in skeletal muscle. Braz. J. Med. Biol. Res. 33:499 –508, 2000.
13. Sweeney, H.L., B.F. Bowman, and J.T. Stull. Myosin light chain phos-
phorylation in vertebrate striated muscle: regulation and function.
Am. J. Physiol. 264(5 Pt 1):C1085–C1095, 1993.
14. Vandenboom, R., R.W. Grange, and M.E. Houston. Threshold for force
potentiation associated with skeletal myosin phosphorylation. Am. J.
Physiol. 265(6 Pt 1):C1456 –C1462, 1993.
15. Young, W.B., A. Jenner, and K. Griffiths. Acute enhancement of power
performance from heavy load squats. J. Strength Cond. Res. 12:82– 84,
1998.
Postactivation Potentiation 143