Eccentric training shows a small strength advantage in healthy older adults
A review favoured eccentric resistance training for strength, while comparisons for function, power and muscle growth remained statistically inconclusive.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Eccentric resistance training produced a small advantage in muscle strength over traditional training in healthy older adults. The review found no statistically significant differences between approaches for functional capacity, muscle power or muscle growth. Those null comparisons do not demonstrate that the approaches are equivalent, and the abstract provides limited detail about the training programs.
The abstract omits training durations, confidence intervals and detailed program descriptions. Its suggestions about longer programs and more sessions rely on associations that did not reach statistical significance.
What researchers found
Muscle strength
Eccentric versus traditional training: a small, statistically significant standardized mean difference. Training durations and a confidence interval were not reported.
Starting point versus direct comparison
Both training groups improved strength and functional capacity compared with their own starting measurements. These within-group changes answer a different question from the direct comparison between training approaches, which showed only a small strength advantage.
Exploratory patterns
Age was associated with power gains in the eccentric group; signals involving program length and session count were not statistically significant. These exploratory analyses do not establish how to tailor a training schedule.
The original publication
The effects of eccentric versus traditional resistance training on muscle strength, power, hypertrophy, and functional performance in older adults: A systematic review with multilevel meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Chaabene H, Müller P, Dhahbi W et al.
Ageing Res Rev · 2026
- PubMed ID
- 41192799
- Record checked
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