Romuald Lepers

University of Burgundy | UB · Laboratoire Motricité-Plasticité

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of mental fatigue on the duration of actual and imagined goal-directed arm movements involving speed-accuracy trade-off. Ten participants performed actual and imagined point-to-point arm movements as accurately and as fast as possible before and after a 90-min sustained cognitive task inducing me...

Mental exertion is known to impair endurance performance, but its effects on neuromuscular function remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that mental exertion reduces torque and muscle activation during intermittent maximal voluntary contractions of the knee extensors. Ten subjects performed in a randomized order thre...

The aim of this study was to test the effects of mental exertion involving response inhibition on pacing and endurance performance during a subsequent 5-km running time trial. After familiarization, 12 physically active subjects performed the time trial on a treadmill after two different cognitive tasks: (i) an incongruent Stroop task involving res...

Purpose: The aim of this study was to test the hypotheses that prolonged mental exertion (i) reduces maximal muscle activation and (ii) increases the extent of central fatigue induced by subsequent endurance exercise. Methods: The neuromuscular function of the knee extensor muscles was assessed in 10 male subjects in two different conditions: (i...

In the last decades, the participation of elderly trained people in endurance events such as marathon running has dramatically increased. Previous studies suggested that the performance of master runners (>40 years) during marathon running has improved. The aims of the study were (1) to analyze the changes in participation and performance trends of...

This study investigated torque production resulting from the combined application wide‐pulse neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES), delivered over the posterior tibial nerve, and muscle lengthening at two distinct amplitudes. Wide‐pulse NMES (pulse duration: 1ms; stimulation intensity: 5 – 10% of maximal voluntary contraction) was delivered a...

Purpose This study examined the physiological effects of 12 weeks of detraining and retraining in a highly trained master triathlete (age 53.8 years). Methods Variables associated with swimming, cycling, and running performance, including V ˙ O2max, peak power output (PPO), gross cycling efficiency (CE), running maximal aerobic velocity (MAV), run...

This pilot study sought to explore the contribution of the large intestine microbiota to energy metabolism and exercise performance through its ability to degrade fibers into short‐chain fatty acids (SCFAs). To investigate this, a correlational study was carried out on athlete horses under the same management conditions. Fecal microbiota diversity...

Purpose: Warming up before competition is universally recognized as an effective way to enhance performance. However, only a few articles have directly investigated different warm-up strategies adopted by triathletes and suggested by coaches. The Olympic-distance triathlon is an endurance competition characterized, at least for the elite, by a fast...

This study investigated the influence of stimulation parameters on torque production when combining a brief muscle lengthening with electrical stimulation. Fifteen volunteers participated in one experimental session where two distinct stimulation modalities were compared: wide-pulse high-frequency ( WPHF, pulse duration: 1ms, frequency: 100Hz), fav...

The arena or E-games triathlon as a unique real world and virtual mixed-model endurance sports event. The sport of triathlon has evolved to become a discipline comprising races of different lengths and formats. It has also undergone significant growth in popularity and exposure with several variations in format from the classic swim-bike-run combin...

Mental fatigue is common in society, but its effects on force production capacities remain unclear. This study aimed to investigate the impact of mental fatigue on maximal force production, rate of force development-scaling factor (RFD-SF), and force steadiness during handgrip contractions. Fourteen participants performed two randomized sessions, d...

This study aimed to evaluate torque production in response to the application of a brief muscle lengthening (LEN) during neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) applied over the nerve trunk. Fifteen subjects participated in three experimental sessions, where NMES (1 ms, 20 and 100 Hz, 15-s duration, at an intensity evoking 5-10% of maximal volu...

Introduction Several studies in psychology provided compelling evidence that emotions significantly impact motor control. Yet, these evidences mostly rely on behavioral investigations, whereas the underlying neurophysiological processes remain poorly understood. Methods Using a classical paradigm in motor control, we tested the impact of affective...

Smartphones are now in very widespread use, and concerns have arisen about potential detrimental effects, even with acute use. These adverse consequences are often linked to the emergence of mental fatigue. While the cognitive implications of fatigue are well-documented, knowledge about the specific influence of acute smartphone use on cognitive pe...

Introduction A recent study showed that cadence modulation during short eccentric (ECC) cycling exercise affects oxygen consumption (VO 2 ), muscular activity (EMG), and perception of effort (PE). This study examined the effect of cadence on VO 2 , EMG and PE during prolonged ECC cycling and exercise-induced neuromuscular alterations. Methods 22 p...

Have you ever felt tired after a day at school? That feeling you get from doing tasks that need a lot of attention and focus is called mental fatigue. Scientists created tasks in their laboratories to study this feeling. They observed that when we are mentally tired, both our thinking abilities and physical performance become worse. Scientists are...

Eccentric, compared to concentric exercise, is proposed to involve different neuro‐motor processing strategies and a higher level of mental demand. This study compared eccentric and concentric cycling at matched perceived effort and torque for the mental demand and related‐cortical activation patterns. Nineteen men (30 ± 6 years) performed four dif...

Large amounts of high-starch concentrates are traditionally fed to horses in training. However, this has been associated with digestive or muscle diseases and behavioural modifications. In parallel, it has been demonstrated that horses fed high-fibre, low-starch diets achieve the same performance over an exercise test as the ones fed high-starch di...

To date, the literature has failed to individuate a clear motivation for the performance decrement after a mental fatigue-inducing task. This study aimed to evaluate biomechanical and perceptual variables during a swimming training session in different mental fatigue states. Seven amateur triathletes watched a documentary, utilized a smartphone, or...

Heart Rate Variability (HRV) is a non-invasive tool for assessing the autonomic regulation of heart rate through variations in RR-intervals. It reflects the control of parasympathetic and sympathetic autonomic functions in the cardiovascular system. In humans, HRV is used to adjust exercise training for improving performance. Also, some HRV paramet...

Blood acetate originates from fiber degradation by the hindgut microbiota. In addition to glucose and fat, acetate represents an energy substrate for muscles during exercise. Compared with horses fed high-starch diets, it has been reported that high-fiber diets lead to higher plasma acetate concentrations prior and post-exercise, lower lactatemia d...

Introduction : La fatigue mentale (FM) est un état psychobiologique causé par une tâche cognitive prolongée pouvant altérer les performances physiques. Récemment, plusieurs études ont indiqué que la FM pouvait également affecter les performances psychomotrices en sport collectif. L’objectif de cette revue narrative est de synthétiser les principale...

La fatigue mentale est un phénomène physiologique qui induit une altération des performances cognitives et physiques. De nombreuses études ont été conduites ces dernières années afin de savoir comment prévenir ou limiter et/ou compenser les effets délétères liés à la fatigue mentale. L’objectif de cette revue narrative de la littérature est de prop...

Purpose: This study assessed the body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness, fiber type and mitochondrial function, and training characteristics of a 71-year-old runner who broke the world record marathon of the men’s 70–74 age category and held several other world records. The values were compared to those of the previous world-record holder. Met...

Paddling technique and stroke kinematics are important performance factors in flatwater sprint kayaking and entail significant energetic demands and a high strength from the muscles of the trunk and upper limbs. The various distances completed (from 200 m to 1000 m) require the athletes to optimize their pacing strategy, to maximize power output di...

Paddling technique and stroke kinematics are important performance factors in flatwater sprint kayaking that require important energetic demand and high strength from the muscles of the trunk and upper limb. The various distance competed (from 200-m to 1000-m) requires the ath-letes to optimize their pacing strategy to maximize power output distrib...

Introduction: The effect of cadence in eccentric (ECC) cycling on physiological and perceptual responses is, to date, poorly understood. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of cadence during ECC cycling on muscular activation (EMG), oxygen consumption (VO2), and perceived effort (PE) for two different levels of power output. Methods: Sevente...

Several studies in psychology suggest that relationships exist between emotional context and motor control. Such a claim is based mainly on behavioral investigations whereas the underlying neurophysiological processes remain little known. Using a classical paradigm in motor control, we tested the impacts of viewing standardized affective pictures d...

Purpose: This study assessed the cardiorespiratory capacity, anaerobic speed reserve, and anthropometric and spatiotemporal variables of a 75-year-old world-class middle-distance runner who previously obtained several European and world records in the age categories of 60-70 years, achieved 13 European titles and 15 world champion titles, and also...

Eccentric, compared to concentric muscle contraction, is thought to be attributed to different strategies of neuro-motor processing and a higher level of mental demand. This study aimed to evaluate the mental demand and related-cortical activation patterns to eccentric and concentric cycling at matched perceived effort and torque. Nineteen healthy...

ntroduction En France, plus de 84% de la population en possède un smartphone. Cependant, son utilisation excessive peut entraîner des problèmes psychologiques et physiques (e.g., dépendance, vision floue et douleurs). Certaines études récentes indiquent que l'utilisation du smartphone peut également induire une dégradation des performances sportive...

How corticospinal excitability changes during eccentric locomotor exercise is unknown. In the present study, 13 volunteers performed 30-min strenuous concentric and eccentric cycling bouts at the same power output (60% concentric peak power output). Transcranial magnetic and electrical femoral nerve stimulations were applied at exercise onset (3rd...

This study examined the influence of knee extensors’ hip and knee angle on force production capacity and their neuromuscular and architectural consequences. Sixteen healthy men performed sub-maximal and maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVIC) of knee extensors with four different combinations of the knee and hip angles. Muscle architecture,...

This study aimed to compare neuromuscular alterations and perceptions of effort and muscle pain induced by concentric and eccentric cycling performed at the same power output or effort perception. Fifteen participants completed three 30-min sessions: one in concentric at 60% peak power output (CON) and two in eccentric, at the same power output (EC...

Mental fatigue impairs both cognitive and physical performance. Bioactive substances (e.g., caffeine) have been used to counteract mental fatigue but could have side effects. The present study aimed to test two non-bioactive strategies to counteract mental fatigue: physical activity and listening to music. The participants first performed an arm-po...

There is a wide range of cadence available to cyclists to produce power, yet they choose to pedal across a narrow one. While neuromuscular alterations during a pedaling bout at non-preferred cadences were previously reviewed, modifications subsequent to one fatiguing session or training intervention have not been focused on. We performed a systemat...

Online corrections of arm movements to visual targets is dependent upon proprioceptive and visual feedback of the arm and body. We asked participants to perform online corrections of arm movements during stance in 2 conditions: 1) full vision of the arm and body, and 2) vision only of final target position. Data shows unperturbed reach movements (l...

To meet their high energy requirements, trained racehorses are commonly fed high-cereal diets which have been correlated with increased health and behavior risks. Replacing part of cereal with dehydrated alfalfa could minimize these risks and provide higher protein levels for optimizing muscle protein synthesis in exercised horses. This study asses...

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake

Corticospinal excitability, and particularly the balance between cortical inhibitory and excitatory processes (assessed in a muscle using single and paired-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation), are affected by neurodegenerative pathologies or following a stroke. This review describes how locomotor exercises may counterbalance these neuroplastic...

Estimation of the age-related decline in athletic performance by analyzing age-group world record performances presents an inherent limitation because the records generally belong to different individuals. Longitudinal studies describing the changes in performance with advancing age for the same individuals with a consistent training regimen are mo...

Are you looking for a training buddy to prepare for your next marathon race? Have you ever considered that your father could be the right person? Would not it be great to cross the finish line side by side and get on the podium together? You probably think that your father is not young enough for such an effort, do not you? We believe that your fat...

Your muscles can contract in different ways: when you walk upstairs, the muscles at the fronts of your thighs shorten (concentric contraction), whereas when you walk downstairs, they lengthen (eccentric contraction). Concentric contractions require more oxygen and thus make you burn more calories. Eccentric contractions are easier but break parts o...

Recent literature suggests that when prolonged, motor imagery (MI) induces mental fatigue and negatively impacts subsequent physical exercise. The aim of this study was to confirm this possibility with neurophysiological and self-reported measures. Thirteen participants performed 200 imagined isometric knee extension contractions (Prolonged MI cond...

The effects of mental fatigue on both cognitive and physical performance are well described in the literature, but the recovery aspects of mental fatigue have been less investigated. The present study aimed to fill this gap by examining the persistence of mental fatigue on behavior and electrophysiological mechanisms. Fifteen participants performed...

INTRODUCTION: Mental fatigue (MF) is defined as a psychobiological state caused by prolonged periods of demanding cognitive activity and characterized by subjective feelings of “tiredness” and “lack of energy (Boksem and Tops, 2008). MF can have many effects on physical performances (for a review see Pageaux and Lepers, 2018). Among the negative ef...

Background: This study tested muscle activity (EMG) and perception of effort in eccentric (ECC) and concentric (CON) cycling before and after four sessions of both. Methods: Twelve volunteers naïve to ECC cycling attended the laboratory six times. On day 1, they performed a CON cycling peak power output (PPO) test. They then carried-out four sessio...

Exercise Physiology, a section of the journal Frontiers in Physiology

PURPOSE: Perceptions of effort (PE) and muscle pain (MP) influence performance and engagement in regular physical exercise. Literature-based standardized instructions describe PE as resulting from multiple sensory cues including “aches”. This description of PE creates a possible confound when PE and MP are being considered separately. This project...

Purpose: This work aimed to examine the effect of contraction type (eccentric- ECC- or concentric- CON) on neuromuscular fatigue magnitude and etiology following exercise performed at maximal intensity and similar total mechanical work. Methods: Ten males participated in 4 experimental sessions (separate days) during which they performed 2 sets of...

PurposeTo examine corticospinal excitability and neuromuscular function following the completion of eccentric (ECC) or concentric (CON) maximal exercises of same mechanical work.Methods Ten males (29.9 ± 11.8 years) performed maximal isokinetic knee extensor contractions in four experimental sessions. The two first sessions (one in ECC and one in C...

TO THE EDITOR: Over the last three decades, the improvement in the marathon world record (WR) has been ~4–5% for elite runners (1). During the same time period, marathon performances of the best master runners have improved at a much greater rate, especially for the older age groups (� 60 yr old) (2, 3). When changes in marathon world record perfo...

In their Viewpoint, Joyner et al. (2) proposed that a convergence of factors (physiology, training, technology, and logistics) may explain the recent swift improvement in marathon times. While we agree on the importance of these factors and we acknowledge previous research in elite marathon runners, we believe that masters athletes can add to the d...

The aim of this study was to examine the physiological profiles and the pacing strategies of the father (59 years old) and son (34 years old) who broke the World record time (4:59:22; father : 2:27:52, son : 2:31:30) for combined father and son marathon in 2019. Oxygen uptake (VO 2 ), heart rate (HR), ventilation (VE), blood lactate concentration (...

Age-related changes in physiology of master triathletes (i.e. >40 years old) result inevitably in a decrease in triathlon performance. The increase in participation of master triathletes in short- and long-distance triathlons over the last decades has been accompanied by an improvement in their performances at a faster rate than their younger count...

Maximum oxygen consumption (VO2max) is not only an indicator of endurance performance, but also a strong predictor of cardiovascular disease and mortality. This physiological parameter is known to decrease with aging. In turn, physical exercise might attenuate the rate of aging-related decline in VO2max, which in light of the global population agin...

This study investigated the effects of eccentric (ECC) and concentric (CON) semi-recumbent leg cycling on global corticospinal excitability (CSE), assessed through the activity of a non-exercised hand muscle. Thirteen healthy male adults completed two 30-min bouts of moderate intensity ECC and CON recumbent cycling on separate days. Power output (P...

Oxygen uptake (V̇O2), heart rate (HR), energy cost (EC) and oxygen pulse are lower during downhill compared to level or uphill locomotion. However, a change in oxygen pulse and EC during prolonged grade exercise is not well documented. This study investigated changes in cardiorespiratory responses and EC during 45-min grade exercises. Nine male hea...

Understanding neurophysiological functioning of eccentric (ECC) contractions is necessary when considering strategies for improving muscle strength to both sports performance and rehabilitation programs. Indeed, ECC contraction requires a lower energy consumption to develop the same amount of force compared to concentric (CON) contraction. At the s...

INTRODUCTION Decrease in torque developed during a maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVCISO) has been broadly employed to quantify neuromuscular fatigue. However, little is known on how well loss of MVCISO torque reflects magnitude and etiology of neuromuscular fatigue induced by dynamic exercise (concentric- CON- or eccentric- ECC). Hence,...

Introduction : De nombreux travaux issus des sciences affectives et de la psychologie ont démontré l'existence de liens entre contexte émotionnel et paramètres du mouvement. Néanmoins, ceux-ci s'appuient majoritairement sur des mesures uniquement comportementales, si bien que les mécanismes neurophysiologiques sous-jacents restent encore très peu c...

Introduction La fatigue mentale est état psychobiologique causé par la réalisation d’une tâche cognitive prolongée et/ou intense, caractérisée par une sensation subjective de fatigue et de manque d’énergie (Boksem & Tops, 2008). Elle impacte les performances cognitives (e.g., baisse de l’attention) mais également physiques (e.g., Pageaux & Lepers,...

Life expectancy is increasing globally, and the oldest old (≥85 years) are the fastest-growing population segment. Preservation of physical fitness at advanced ages is, therefore , a major medical problem that no drug is likely to target in the foreseeable future. However, some sports achievements by centenarians suggest that, with proper exercise...

Purpose: To examine the cardiorespiratory, muscular, and skeletal characteristics of an 83-year-old champion female master athlete (called DL in this study) who had set multiple world running records in the 80-to-84-year-old age group. Methods: Measures of maximal oxygen uptake, maximal heart rate, maximal isometric torque for knee extensor musc...

Purpose: This study assessed the cardiorespiratory capacity and running economy (RE) of a 59-yr-old ex-Olympian athlete who ran a marathon in 2:30:15 in 2019. The athlete retired from running at 32 yr old (best marathon performance: 2:13:59) for a 16-yr period after his participation at the Olympics. Methods: Heart rate (HR), oxygen uptake (V˙O2...

DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00496.2019