Effects of imagery-weight exercise.

Objective: To study the effects of imagery-weight exercise on muscle strength. Material and Method: Preliminary study of a before and after designed experiment was conducted at the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Bangkok, from June to September 2004. Fifteen healthy sedentary volunteers: 5 males, 10 females, mean age 28.7 ± 3.5 years were enrolled. The participants were instructed to perform imagery-weight exercise training with their non-dominant arms. The program consisted of 3 sets of 10 repetitions ofelbow flexion, 3 days/week, for 8 weeks. The arm muscles strength were assessed with computerized isotonic machine. One-Repetition Maximum (1-RM) at before and after the training program, was compared. Results: The mean 1-RM ofelbow flexors increased by 44.9% (from 6.78 ± 2.10 kg to 9.83 ± 2.32 kg, p = 0.000). The mean 1-RM of elbow extensors increased by 32.0% (from 4.03 ± 1.98 kg to 5.33 ± 2.32 kg, p = 0.000). Conclusion: Imagery-weight exercise is another effective technique of low impact strength training.