Investigating the Effect of Fatigue on Muscular

Performance
Aly Fawzy
Partner: Arman
PSK4U1-02
Mr. Martin
November 9th, 2015

Investigating the Effect of Fatigue on Muscular

Purpose:
Fatigue is known as the decline in the ability of an individual to maintain a
constant level of performance. After the onset of muscle fatigue, several
physiological processes occur that later affect the muscles ability to sustain
a constant force, and thereby decreasing it.
Under aerobic conditions, muscles utilize oxygen to produce ATP from
glucose through a process called aerobic respiration. This process is very
efficient and produces 36ATPs from every molecule of glucose. Carbon
dioxide and water are the by-products of this reaction. When a muscle
undergoes rigorous exercise, it requires more oxygen keep up with the ATP
demand. At this point a muscle undergoes anaerobic respiration to keep up
with the ATP demand, without the use of oxygen. There are two pathways for
anaerobic respiration, ATP-PC and glycolysis; ATP-PC lasts for 10-15 seconds
in the beginning of exercise and uses phosphocreatine as fuel; while
glycolysis is mainly used between 15 sec and 3 min of an exercise interval
and uses glucose as fuel. Both pathways produce only 2 ATPs. At the end of
glycolysis, pyruvate is produced, which gets converted to lactate or lactic
acid. The advantage of anaerobic respiration is that the muscle cell can
make ATP without oxygen very quickly. The disadvantage to anaerobic
respiration (Glycolysis) is that it produces lactic acid which gives muscles a
temporary burning sensation, and hampers the breakdown of glucose, which
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decreases the muscles ability to contract. Muscle fatigue results when too
much lactate builds up in a muscle above a certain threshold. Thus, it can be
assumed that fatigue results when the demand for ATP is greater than the
rate at which ATP can be produced in the muscle fibres. Under condition of
extreme fatigue, muscles become incapable of contracting, thus
performance suffers.
The purpose of this experiment was to investigate the change in
performance as a response to muscle fatigue. Performance is measured as
the number of squeezes of a clothespin over 20 sec intervals (trials) for 200
sec without rest. A significant decrease in the number of squeezes translates
to fatigue taking place as a result of accumulation of lactic acid.

Hypothesis:
The sustained muscular activity of the hand muscles increases the
accumulation of lactic acid which later results in fatigue, and therefore
decreases the number of clothespin squeezes over trials (decrease in
performance). Due to muscular asymmetries, the dominant hand is more
efficient in terms of fatigue resistance than the non-dominant hand, so the
dominant hand will achieve more squeezes.

Materials:

1 Clothespin
A Stopwatch
Pencil and paper (to record results)
3

Procedure:
Step1: The stopwatch was set to zero, and was given to the partner that is
not performing the experiment.
Step2: The performing partner held the clothespin between the tip of his
thumb and index finger of the dominant hand.
Step3: The non-performing partner signalled to the performer to start
squeezing. The performing partner stated opening and closing the clothespin
quickly and completely while the other fingers of the hand were held out
straight. At the same time the non-performing partner started the time using
the stopwatch.
Step 4: The performing partner called out the number of squeezes while
time was running.
Step5: After 20 seconds, the non-performing partner recorded the number
of squeezes the performer has reached.
Step 6: Each trial lasted 20 seconds. Ten trials were recorded. No rest was
given between trails.
Step 7: Steps 1 6 were repeated using the non-dominant hand after a 5
minute rest period.
Step 8: Steps 1 7 were repeated again with the partners switching roles.

Results:
The results in this report are for one performer only. As shown in Table 1 and
Figure 1, there is an overall decreasing trend in the number of squeezes
across trials. In trial one, 70 squeezes occurred in the dominant hand, while
in trial ten, only 43 were recorded, meaning a difference of 27. Similar results
in the non-dominant hand were observable; there is a decline from 57 in trial
one to 41 in trial ten, meaning a difference of 16. Although not as much as
the dominant hand, there is evidence of a declining performance.
Table 1 |This table shows the number of squeezes of clothespin for dominant and non-dominate hand,
over 10 trails, 20 sec each trail (with no rest in between trails).

Trails
1
2
3
4
5
6

Number of Squeezes ( 20 sec)

Dominant hand
Non-Dominant Hand
70
57
53
53
49
44
44
43
40
36
40
46
5

7
8
9
10

41
37
45
43

43
39
37
41

80
70
60
50
Number of squeezes

40

30
Squeezes: Dominant Hand
20

Squeezes: Non-Dominant Hand

10
0
1

10

Trails ( 20 sec each trail)

Discussion:
Number of squeezes of Dominant and Non-dominant
By the end of the experiment, it was clear that the number of squeezes
performed was less than that of the beginning of the experiment. A possible
explanation for this, as explained on the purpose section, is that the demand
for ATP exceeded the ability of the hand and forearm muscles to provide.
Limitations in energy systems such as the limited source of the ATP-PC
system, could explain why the same performance could not be sustained
Figure 1 |This graph shows the relationship between the numbers of
squeezes of dominate and non-dominant hand over 10 trails.

over longer durations. Another explanation to this finding might be related to

the build-up of metabolites such as lactic acid at the end of the experiment,
which might have interfered with the contractile ability of the muscles
controlling the index thumb fingers.

Since the activity lasted for more than three minutes without rest; it is safe
to assume that all three energy systems individually dominated different
periods throughout the activity. The first 15 seconds can be attributed to the
immediate ATP-PC system, followed by glycolysis for three minutes, and
lastly shifting to the aerobic system. This shift in energy system dominance
can explain why there is fluctuating number of squeezes, and not a strict
consistent decrease in squeezes. It could be possible that a slight
improvement in performance results at the beginning of an energy-system
shift. However, the overall trend is sufficient to demonstrate overall fatigue
effects.
Another observation that can be made from the results is the asymmetrical
results from the dominant and non-dominant hand. With a difference of 23
squeezes, or 5%, it is not a significant difference, yet, it is an expected one.
As the name suggests, the dominant hand is used more frequently than the
non-dominant hand in tasks that require fine motor skills (e.g., writing,
buttoning, etc.) as well as gross motor skills (e.g., holding a coffee cup,
carrying a hand-bag, etc.). As a result difference in a muscles ability to
perform or sustain work will be different.
The type of muscle fibre mainly used in this experiment was Type IIB (fast
glycolytic). Since activity required a maximal speed of contraction,
recruitment of fast-twitch fibres will be expected. In addition, the properties
of this fibre type matched with the results. It is expected that Type IIB fibres

quickly fatigue. As shown in the results, a visible decline in performance can

be observed after the first trial (20 seconds). Its ability to store high amounts
of glycogen and having enzymes to quickly contract, makes it an ideal type
for this activity.
One of limitations of this experiment was that the participant reported a few
instances where the pin did not fully close or open. This could result in an
inflated number of squeezes. Another reported observation was that the
participant might take a quick pause between transitioning the movements.
This could serve as a possible rest period to the muscles, and could influence
the results. Although not directly related to performance, in some instances,
the performer did not keep his fingers out-straight; this variation in
positioning can give a mechanical advantage to the performer. Finally, there
could be an error of 2 squeezes due to technical delays; since up to 70
squeezes can happen each second, this could be faster than the visual ability
of the non-performer to accurately count the squeezes. If this experiment
was repeated, it is recommended that the performer should ensure that they
fully close and open the pin, take no pauses, and keep other fingers outstraight. In addition, an electronic device that could record the number of
squeezes (such as a keyboard key) can eliminate the human-error of visionaided counting.

Discussion questions:
1. As I progressed through each trial, my strength decreased. In Figure 1,
the line is decreasing which means that the number of squeezes is
decreasing. This shows a decline in muscular performance, and
therefore a decrease in strength.
2. Muscular fatigue resulted in the inability to sustain a maximal
performance throughout the trials.
3. At the end of the trails my hands and fingers had a burning sensation
and were weak. This is may be caused by the build-up of lactic acid
which was produced in the glycolysis pathway that the muscle fibres
utilized.
4. The primary energy system in this experiment was the anaerobic lactic
system (glycolysis pathway). Since maximal contraction had to be
performed, the aerobic system is not well suited for this type of
activity. Additionally, the activity lasted 3 minutes and 20 seconds;
which aligns with the time-interval glycolysis takes dominance.
5. Lactic acid is the main product of glycolysis, and it what caused my
muscles to be less efficient; because lactic acid hampered the
breakdown of glucose and decreased the ability for muscles to
contract.
6. Type IIB: Fast Glycolytic fibres are the type of skeletal muscle fibres
mainly used in this experiment.
7. In total, the dominant hand performed 462 squeezes and the nondominant hand, 439. The reason for this difference is because of
muscular asymmetry between the hands. The dominant hand could be

more muscular, stronger, or even more enduring; than the nondominant hand.

Conclusion:
Results revealed that fatigue results in a decline in performance, brought
about by the accumulation of lactic acid. Difference in performance in the
dominant and non-dominant hands were found, which is due to asymmetries.
Glycolysis was used as the main energy system, and Type IIB as the
dominant fibre type, due to the properties and duration of the activity. Aside
from a few non-significant limitations reported during the experiment, the
results show evidence of the effects of fatigue on performance. My
hypothesis has been proven to be correct.

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References:
Erim, Adam, & De Luca. (n.d.). Hand dominance and motor unit firing
behavior. Retrieved

November 22, 2015, from

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9744946
Experiment: Muscle Contraction and Fatigue. (n.d.). Retrieved November 22,
2015, from https://backyardbrains.com/experiments/fatigue
Temertzoglou, T., Livingston, L. A., Challen, P. C., Mandigo, J., & Roy, B. (n.d.).
Energy Systems and Physical Activity. In Kinesiology: An introduction to
exercise science (pp. 210-227).
Types of Skeletal Muscle Fibres. (n.d.). Retrieved November 22, 2015, from
http://www.ivyroses.com/HumanBody/Muscles/types-of-skeletal-musclefibers.php

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