Are you familiar with the concept of post-exercise potentiation? (PEP) It’s a strategy and a way to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of your workouts and do it safely. Post-exercise potentiation is a concept you can apply to your workouts to get more out of them and boost your body’s ability to generate power and explosiveness. Using post-exercise potentiation doesn’t require special equipment or training – but first, you need to know what it is. What exactly is post-exercise potentiation and how does it work?
What is Post Exercise Potentiation?
Post-exercise potentiation (PEP) is a well-known phenomenon and the focus of scientific research. Here’s the crux of it. If you do a few sets of a strength-training exercise using sub-maximal force and then rest for a period of time, your performance on an explosive exercise that follows will improve.
To get this benefit, the first exercise must use the same muscles as the second one. For example, performing a set of squats before doing an explosive activity like a squat jump will improve your vertical jump height. Likewise, doing deadlifts can enhance your explosiveness when you do explosive push-ups.
Post-exercise potentiation (PEP) enhances explosive muscle performance by prepping your muscles with sub-maximal muscle tension beforehand. If your goal is to improve speed, power, or explosiveness, PEP can be an effective way to train.
What Explains the Phenomenon of PEP?
While researchers don’t understand the precise mechanisms behind PEP, they have some theories as to why it works. Calcium ion release plays a key role in muscle contraction. When an action potential travels down a muscle fiber, it triggers the release of calcium from the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR). This brings about the release of stored energy in the form of ATP and allows for increased cross-bridge formation between actin and myosin. The greater number of cross-bridges allows for greater force production by the muscle.
So, calcium is the signal that tells the muscle to contract. When you force muscles to contract sub-maximally before doing an explosive activity, it saturates the calcium receptors in a way that makes the following explosive contractions more efficient.
Another theory proposed to explain post-exercise potentiation is increased neural drive. Before a muscle contraction, your brain sends a signal to the muscle to tell it to contract. The strength of that signal determines how many motor units you’ll recruit for that contraction. Performing an exercise, like a set of squats, before doing an explosive exercise, like a vertical jump, excites your brain and central nervous system, thereby increasing the neural drive to the motor units and maximizing performance on the explosive exercise, in this case, a vertical jump.
How Can You Take Advantage of PEP?
To get the benefits that PEP offers, you would perform sub-maximal contractions at between 60 to 80% of one-rep max, completing 4 to 6 repetitions. Repeat until you’ve done 2 or 3 sets. For example, 4 to 6 squat repetitions for 2 to 3 sets. Then wait for 7 to 10 minutes and do an explosive movement using the same muscles, in this case, a vertical jump. Why rest this long before doing the vertical jump? The performance advantage persists throughout the rest period while the 7-minute rest provides enough time for the fatigue to lessen, so as not to interfere with performance.
Using too much resistance for the pre-exercise, in this case, squats will also reduce performance for the explosive movement that follows. So use a resistance of between 60 and 85% of your one-rep max. Don’t go above 85% of your one-rep max for the first exercise. Rest at least 7 minutes before doing the explosive exercise, as research shows shorter rest periods won’t maximize performance for the explosive exercise that follows.
It’s also more effective to do 2 or 3 sets of sub-maximal contractions on the first exercise than a single set. Keep the repetitions on each set to no more than 6 to maximize performance on the explosive exercise that follows. Following these guidelines will help you get the greatest performance boost.
Choose Your Exercises Wisely
For PEP to be effective, choose two exercises that work the same muscle groups. Some examples include:
- Deadlifts before sprinting or kettlebell swings
- Bench press before explosive push-ups
- Squats before vertical jumps
- Barbell rows before rowing
Unless the exercises are similar, you won’t get enhanced performance. Also, post-exercise potentiation improves power performance on the second, not maximal force production.
Other Benefits of Post Exercise Potentiation
It’s clear that post-exercise potentiation is a strategy for increasing power, but some research suggests it may also increase fatigue resistance. For example, one study of professional rugby players found that back squats before sprints improved speed and lessened fatigue during sprints of 10 and 30 meters. However, the greatest benefits are for the rate of force production. (power)
Conclusion
There’s no doubt that PEP can be a valuable part of your workout routine if you’re trying to develop explosive power, improve your vertical jump, or improve your performance for sprinting. While the science behind it is still the focus of research and debate, the fact that coaches are using PEP with their athletes shows they see the potential.
If you want to see how PEP can benefit your training, try incorporating it into your routine when you’re working on speed or power. Be sure to warm up first, give it a try. You might be surprised at how it can improve your power performance and help you get more out of your workouts.
References:
- Wilson JM, Duncan NM, Marin PJ, Brown LE, Loenneke JP, Wilson SM, Jo E, Lowery RP, Ugrinowitsch C. Meta-analysis of postactivation potentiation and power: effects of conditioning activity, volume, gender, rest periods, and training status. J Strength Cond Res. 2013 Mar;27(3):854-9. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e31825c2bdb. PMID: 22580978.
- Post-activation potentiation: power your way to a new PB! Sports Performance Bulletin. Published December 21, 2018. Accessed August 14, 2022. https://www.sportsperformancebulletin.com/endurance-training/strength-conditioning-and-flexibility/post-activation-potentiation-power-way-new-pb/#:~:text=Post-activation%20potentiation%20%28PAP%29%20is%20the%20phenomenon%20by%20which,bookending%20two%20complimentary%20exercises%20around%20a%20recovery%20period.
- Turner AP, Bellhouse S, Kilduff LP, Russell M. Postactivation Potentiation of Sprint Acceleration Performance Using Plyometric Exercise. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 2015;29(2):343-350. doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000000647.
- Silva RAS, Silva-Júnior FL, Pinheiro FA, Souza PFM, Boullosa DA, Pires FO. Acute Prior Heavy Strength Exercise Bouts Improve the 20-km Cycling Time Trial Performance. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 2014;28(9):2513-2520. doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000000442.
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