The purpose of this investigation was to compare partial range-of-motion versus full range-of-motion upper-body resistance training on strength and muscle thickness (MT) in young men. Volunteers were randomly assigned to three groups: 1) full range-of-motion (FULL; n = 15), 2) partial range-of-motion (PART; n = 15), or 3) control (CON; n =10). Subjects trained two days per week for 10 weeks in a periodized program. Primary outcome measures included elbow flexion maximal strength measured by 1 repetition max (1-RM), and elbow flexors MT measured by ultrasound. Results indicated that elbow flexion 1-RM significantly increased (p<0.05) for the FULL (25.7 ± 9.6%) and PART groups (16.0 ± 6.7%) but not for the CON group (1.7 ± 5.5%). Also, FULL 1-RM strength was significantly greater than the PART 1-RM after the training period. Average elbow flexors MT significantly increased for both training groups (9.65 ± 4.4% for FULL and 7.83 ± 4.9 for PART). These data suggest that muscle strength and MT can be improved with both FULL and PART resistance training, but FULL may lead to greater strength gains.
