Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2002, 16(1), 123–128
q 2002 National Strength & Conditioning Association
Effects of Low-Intensity Resistance Exercise With
Short Interset Rest Period on Muscular Function
in Middle-Aged Women
YUDAI TAKARADA AND NAOKATA ISHII
Department of Life Science, College of Arts and Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 153-8902, Japan.
ABSTRACT
We investigated the effect of low-intensity resistance exercise
training on muscular size and strength where the interset
rest period was shortened so as to reduce the metabolite
clearance. Female subjects (aged 45.4 6 9.5 years, n 5 10)
performed bilateral knee extension exercises in a seated po-
sition on an isotonic leg extension machine. The exercise ses-
sions consisted of 3 sets of exercise at a mean intensity of
;50% 1RM with an interset rest period of 30 seconds and
was performed twice a week for a period of 12 weeks. The
strength and the cross-sectional area (CSA) of the knee ex-
tensors and flexors were examined with an isokinetic dy-
namometer and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), respec-
tively. The CSAs of the knee extensors and flexors increased
by 7.1 6 1.6% (p , 0.01, Wilcoxon signed rank test) and 2.5
6 1.4% (not significant), respectively. Isometric and isoki-
netic strengths increased significantly (p , 0.01) at all veloc-
ities examined, whereas no significant change was observed
in those of knee flexors. These results indicate that a low-
intensity resistance exercise with a short interset rest period
is substantially effective in inducing muscular hypertrophy
and concomitant increase in strength.
Key Words: interset rest period, intramuscular envi-
ronment, muscular hypertrophy, resistance training
Reference Data: Takarada, Y., and N. Ishii. Effects of
low-intensity resistance exercise with short interset
rest period on muscular function in middle-aged
women. J. Strength Cond. Res. 16(1):123–128. 2002.
Introduction
M uscular function declines with aging. In partic-
ular, reductions in both the muscle fiber area (6)
and the number of muscle fibers (9) have been shown
to cause a marked decrease in muscular strength in
older people. Muscular strength is a basic precondition
for any human movement such as lifting, holding, and
carrying loads, all of which should be closely related
to the daily activities for life. Thus middle-aged and
elderly people must keep their muscular strength for
health and well-being. In general, heavy resistance
training has effectively induced muscular hypertrophy
(3, 5, 16) and an improvement of nervous control to
exert force in older people (1, 13). However, resistance
exercise with high intensity (.80% 1 repetition maxi-
mum [1RM]) may bear a risk for injury, and thus may
have to be applied to older people with precaution be-
cause it has been reported that ;20% of the subjects
aged 70–79 years show some symptoms of orthopedic
injury after an exercise at 1RM (15). In addition, a dra-
matic increase in systolic blood pressure (up to 250
mm Hg) has been reported to occur even in young
subjects during heavy resistance exercise at an inten-
sity of ;8RM for large muscle groups (4).
We have previously shown that low-intensity resis-
tance exercise combined with vascular occlusion in-
duced a marked hypertrophy and concomitant in-
crease in strength in elbow flexor muscles of older
women, even if the load of exercise was much lower
than expected to induce muscular hypertrophy (20).
The processes related to such an effect of externally
applied occlusive stimulus have been interpreted as
follows: (a) additional recruitment of fast-twitch fibers
in a hypoxic condition, (b) moderate production of re-
active oxygen species (ROS) promoting the tissue
growth (19), and (c) stimulated secretion of catechol-
amines and growth hormone by intramuscular accu-
mulation of metabolic subproducts (18). These studies
indicate that local hypoxic and acidic intramuscular
environment during the low-intensity resistance exer-
cise with vascular occlusion potentiates muscular ad-
aptation (hypertrophy) to resistance exercise.
Externally applied occlusion would not be neces-
sarily required for regional accumulation of metabo-
lites if muscles would be forced to contract in a hyp-
oxic condition and the metabolite clearance would be
simultaneously suppressed. Under normal circulation,
sustained contractions at .40% maximal voluntary
contractions (MVCs) have been shown to inhibit both
blood inflow to and outflow from the muscle (2, 12).
Thus the above condition during exercise is expected
to be satisfied, at least partially, when intensity at
123
124 Takarada and Ishii
.40% MVC is combined with the short interset rest
period. Indeed, Kraemer et al. (7, 8) have shown that
secretions of growth hormone are strongly stimulated
by conventional resistance exercises with a shortened
interset rest period (;1 minute) in both men (7, 8) and
women (7), although the intensity was as high as 80%
1RM. In men, a similar exercise has been shown to
cause an increase in plasma testosterone concentration
(7). However, long-term effects of such resistance ex-
ercises with a short rest period have not been fully
investigated.
In the present study, we investigated the long-term
effects of resistance exercise with relatively low inten-
sity (;50% 1RM) and a short interset rest period (30
seconds). The results showed considerable effects of
the exercise regimen in inducing muscular hypertro-
phy and a concomitant increase in strength, suggest-
ing the importance of manipulating the interset rest
period in resistance exercise for older people.
Methods
Experimental Design
The present experiment was made to see whether low-
intensity resistance training with a shortened interset
rest period is substantially effective in gaining mus-
cular size and strength. Since it was carried out as a
part of health-related service programs for citizens, the
same provisionally effective exercise regimen (with the
short rest period) was to be applied to all subjects. The
exercise used for experiments was a bilateral leg ex-
tension at a mean intensity of ;50% 1RM. Strengths
and muscular cross-sectional areas of both knee exten-
sors and flexors were measured before and after the
12-week training period. Variables obtained after the
exercise training were compared with those obtained
before the exercise training within the same individ-
uals. Variables for knee flexors were used as untrained
‘‘internal control.’’
Subjects
Ten healthy women aged 41–62 years (45.4 6 9.5 years
[mean 6 SD]) volunteered for the study. After com-
plete examinations of health status and medical his-
tory, they engaged in the resistance exercise of knee
extensor muscles. Their physical characteristics were
the following: height, 155.7 6 5.6 cm; weight, 53.5 6
9.4 kg (mean 6 SD). Five subjects were postmeno-
pausal. None of them were on medications or hormon-
al therapy or had prior experience with the specialized
resistance exercise training. Strength of the knee ex-
tensor muscles and muscular cross-sectional area of
the midthigh were measured before and after the 12-
week training period. The subjects were previously in-
formed about the experimental procedure to be used
as well as the purpose of the study, and their informed
consent was obtained. The study was approved by the
Ethical Committee for Human Experiments at the Uni-
versity of Tokyo.
Regimes for Exercise Training
The subjects performed a bilateral knee extension ex-
ercise in a seated position with an isotonic leg exten-
sion machine. The range of joint motion was from 08
to 908 (08 at full extension). Based on our previous
study (20), exercise was performed twice a week and
lasted for 12 weeks, including the period for instruc-
tion and orientation (24 sessions in total). In the exer-
cise session, the subjects performed 3 sets of exercise,
each separated by an interval of 30 seconds. The in-
tensity of exercise was 54.2 6 3.5% (mean 6 SE) of the
weight that could be lifted once throughout the com-
plete range of movement (1RM). The 1RM was mea-
sured every 4 weeks, and the absolute intensity was
adjusted so as to keep the relative intensity constant.
The subjects repeated the lifting movement until fail-
ure, and the average repetition in each set was 14.3 6
0.7. The subjects were instructed to lift and lower the
load at an approximately constant velocity, taking
about 2 seconds for each of the concentric and eccen-
tric actions. They also performed resistance exercises
for other muscle groups (i.e., abdominal flexion, seated
rowing, arm curl with machines, and back extension
without external load [3 sets for each]). The intensity
for every exercise was ,60% 1RM, and the interset rest
period was ;2 minutes.
All of the exercise sessions were preceded by a 10-
minute warm-up on a cycle ergometer at about 50% of
the physical work capacity and a stretching of the ma-
jor muscle groups to be trained. Blood pressure (mean
systolic pressure, 138.2 6 5.8 mm Hg; mean diastolic
pressure, 86.1 6 2.7 mm Hg) was periodically mea-
sured before and after the exercise session, and no con-
siderable abnormality was observed throughout the
period of exercise.
Measurements of Muscular Strength
Isokinetic torque—angular velocity relations of knee
extensors and flexors were examined by using an iso-
kinetic dynamometer (Cybex 770-Norm, Ceybex Di-
vision of Lumex Inc., Medway, MA). The subjects were
familiarized with the testing procedure on several oc-
casions prior to the measurements. They sat on a chair
with their back upright with their right leg firmly at-
tached to the lever of the dynamometer. The pivot
point of the lever was visually aligned with the rota-
tion axis of the knee joint maintained at that position
during all movement. Isokinetic strength was mea-
sured at preset angular velocities of 308, 608, and 1808
per second. The range of angular movement of the
knee joint was limited between 08 and 908. The value
of peak torque was measured regardless of where it
was developed within the range of movement. Three
trials were made at each angular velocity, and the

Figure 1. Typical magnetic resonance images showing
transverse sections of the mid-thigh, taken before (a) and
after (b) the exercise training with a short interset interval,
which lasted for 12 weeks. The images show identical,
midportion sections along the femur in the same subject.
The bar indicates 50 mm.
highest value obtained was used for further analyses.
Isometric torque was measured at the knee angle of
808.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
To obtain cross-sectional images of the thigh, magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI) was performed by using a
0.5 T superconducting system (Gyroscan T5 II, Philips
Medical Systems Int., Best, The Netherlands) with a
wraparound body coil. The coil covered the whole
thigh, including markers attached to the skin. Twelve
serial sections were acquired with a 6- to 10-mm sec-
tional thickness and a 0.6- to 1.0-mm intersection gap.
The field of view was 350 mm. Pulse sequences for
spin-echo T1–weighted images were performed with
a repetition time of 500–552 ms and an echo time of
Resistance Exercise With Short Interset Rest Period 125
20–25 ms. Two signal acquisitions were used. The scan
matrix and reconstruction matrix were 205 3 256 and
256 3 256, respectively. The image aquisition was
started immediately after the subject lied in a supine
posture to minimize the effect of gravity-induced fluid
shift. The time required for the whole sequence was
about 4–6 minutes.
For each subject in the training group, the range of
serial sections was deliberately determined on longi-
tudinal images along the femur so as to obtain sections
of identical portions before and after the period of ex-
ercise training. Among the photographs of 12 cross-
sectional images obtained, those of 2 portions near the
midpoint of the thigh were chosen for the measure-
ments of the muscular cross-sectional area (CSA). Pho-
tographic negatives were digitized into an 8-bit grays-
cale at a space resolution of 144 pixels per inch and
stored in a computer with an Epson ART-8500G scan-
ner. Determinations of tissue outlines and measure-
ments of CSAs for muscles and other tissues were
made by using National Institutes of Health Image
(version 1.25) software. The measurements were re-
peated 3 times for each image and their mean values
were used. Deviation in these 3 sets of measurement
was less than 2%.
Statistical Analyses
All variables are shown as means and the standard
errors (6SE). Wilcoxon signed ranks test was used to
compare differences between pre- and posttraining
variables within the same individuals. For all statistical
analyses, the 0.01 level of significance was used.
Results
Changes in Muscle Cross-Sectional Area After
Exercise Training
Typical examples of the cross-sectional MRI of an
identical midportion of the thigh are shown in Figure
1. The images taken before (Figure 1a) and after (Fig-
ure 1b) the period of exercise training with a short
interset-interval (12 weeks) exhibit a marked increase
(by ;12%) in the CSA of knee extensors after the pe-
riod of training. To reduce errors in measurements as-
sociated with a slight mismatch between the sectional
portions obtained before and after the period of exer-
cise training and incidental deformations of muscles
during the processes of the MRIs, 2 sections around
the mid portion of the femoris, each separated by ;20
mm, were selected from 12 serial sections, and mean
tissue CSAs were obtained from these 2 sections. The
CSA of knee extensors showed significant (p 5 0.0001)
increases after the exercise training, and the percent-
age increase in CSA was 7.1 6 1.6%, whereas no sig-
nificant change was observed in knee flexors and fe-
murs (Figure 2).
126 Takarada and Ishii

Figure 2. The cross-sectional areas (CSAs) of the knee ex-

tensor, flexor, and femur measured before (square) and af-
ter 12 weeks of exercise training (dotted square), shown as
means 6 SE (n 5 10). The asterisk represents statistically
significant changes from pretraining values (p , 0.01).

Changes in Muscular Strength After Exercise Training

The 1RM of the knee extension exercise increased by
38.2 6 8.5% (p 5 0.0001) after the period of training.
Figure 3 shows changes in isokinetic force-velocity re-
lations. All values of isokinetic torque were normal-
ized to pretraining values of the isometric torque. The
exercise training induced significant increases in both
isometric and isokinetic strengths at all velocities ex-
amined (Figure 3a), whereas no significant change was
observed in those of knee flexors (Figure 3b). When
averaged throughout all velocities, the percentage in-
crease in knee extension strength after the exercise
training was 16.9 6 3.1%. Maximal isometric torque
per unit CSA (in Nm21) increased significantly from
2.36 6 0.17 to 2.55 6 0.19 (p 5 0.0003). The ratio be-
tween knee extension torque and knee flexion torque
also increased significantly at 3 out of 4 velocities ex-
amined (Figure 3c), indicating that the increase in
strength is an exercise-specific effect.

Discussion
The present study showed that a low-intensity resis-
tance exercise with a short interset rest period (30 sec-

training program. All values of isokinetic torque were nor-

→ malized to the pretraining values of isometric (velocity 5
0) torque (Po) and shown as means 6 SE (n 5 10). (C) The
Figure 3. Effects of exercise training on force-velocity re- ratio between knee extension torque and knee flexion
lations. Isokinetic torque–angular velocity relations of knee torque plotted against velocity. The asterisk represents sta-
extensors (A) and flexors (B) were obtained before (open tistically significant changes from pretraining values (p ,
symbols) and after (filled symbols) the 12-week exercise 0.01).

onds) is effective in inducing muscular hypertrophy
and a concomitant increase in strength. The intensity
used in the exercise was as low as the ;50% 1RM
throughout the period of training, which correspond-
ed to ;30–40% of the maximal isometric force mea-
sured with an isokinetic dynamometer (maximal vol-
untary contraction [MVC]). Exercise training with
such a low intensity has generally been thought to be
ineffective in muscle gain of size and weight (10). In-
deed, a 16-week training session with a low-intensity
workout (;50% 1RM) and longer interset rest period
(1 minute) did not induce muscular hypertrophy in
elbow flexors of older women (20), in spite of the same
exercise intensity as that in the present study. There-
fore, the present effect of low-intensity resistance ex-
ercise with a short interset rest period would be
caused primarily by the shortened interset rest period,
which may share the common mechanism operating
in a low-intensity resistance training combined with
vascular occlusion (20).
We have previously shown that a low-intensity re-
sistance exercise combined with vascular occlusion in-
duced a marked hypertrophy and concomitant in-
crease in strength in elbow flexor muscles of older
women, even if the load of exercise was much lower
than expected to induce muscular hypertrophy (20).
The vascular occlusion causes a hypoxic and acidic in-
tramuscular environment during the exercise, which
then induces an additional motor-unit recruitment of
type II fibers to keep a given level of force (18), as has
been shown in contractions under ischemic (14, 17, 18)
and fatiguing conditions (11). In addition, our recent
study with young male subjects also showed that a
low-intensity (20% 1RM) exercise with occlusion for
the lower extremities caused a 290-fold increase in the
plasma concentration of growth hormone, whereas no
such effect was seen after the exercise without occlu-
sion (18). These processes may therefore play a part in
the potent effect of low-intensity exercise with occlu-
sion in inducing muscular hypertrophy.
When contractions are made at increasing percent-
ages of MVC, full occlusion and ischemia occurs at
approximately 40–60% MVC (2, 12). Therefore, resis-
tance exercise at an intensity .40% MVC would cause
an ischemic intramuscular environment during the ex-
ercise, the recovery from which would largely depend
on the 10-interset rest period. Kraemer et al. (7) have
demonstrated that a sufficient volume of high-inten-
sity exercise (at an intensity of ;80% 1RM for large
muscle groups) done with an interset rest period as
short as 1 minute transiently provokes more than a 10-
fold increase in the plasma concentration of growth
hormone in women. Because such a dramatic increase
in plasma growth hormone concentration was not seen
after exercises with a longer interset interval (3 min-
utes), it has been speculated that local accumulation of
Resistance Exercise With Short Interset Rest Period 127
metabolites by the shortened interset rest period stim-
ulates the hypophyseal secretion of growth hormone.
In the present study, a low-intensity resistance ex-
ercise (;50% 1RM) was performed in combination
with a much shorter interset rest period to enhance a
hypoxic and acidic intramuscular environment even
under normal circulation. Such an exercise training
was shown, for the first time, to be substantially effec-
tive in inducing increases in muscular size and
strength. Although the present study lacks a control
experiment (i.e., low-intensity exercise with a longer
rest period), it provides important information for pre-
scribing exercise regimens without large mechanical
stress for older individuals.
Practical Applications
The present study showed that low-intensity exercise
training for knee extensors with a short interset rest
period is substantially effective in inducing muscular
hypertrophy and a concomitant increase in strength.
However, the quantitative contribution of a shortened
interset rest period in the effect of exercise remains
unclear because of the absence of data on the effect of
exercise training with the same intensity and a much
longer interset rest period. By combining the present
data and those of an earlier study on the roles played
by endocrine activities (18) and intramuscular blood
circulation (18), we can conclude that controlling the
interset rest period is important to gain a muscle-tro-
phic effect from resistance exercise. Apart from the
precise mechanism for its effect, the usefulness of the
present, low-intensity exercise with a shortened inter-
set rest period should provide important information
to practitioners who may have to prescribe exercise
regimens for people without sufficient physical
strength. In particular, it may work in introductory
regimens for older people and those in the early stages
of rehabilitation.
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Address correspondence to Yudia Takarada,
CYM06016@niftyserve.or.jp.