Procedure
fasting venous blood, fasting venous blood samples
Participants were randomly assigned to either the TRT group or the FRT group and underwent one bout of acute training and six consecutive weeks (three days per week) of training. Before randomization, a statistician employed a simple randomization method to generate random numbers using Excel software and blinded data. Then, the participants were randomly divided into the FRT and TRT groups, with all participants agreeing to the group allocation. Participants visited the laboratory on three separate occasions, during which we obtained fasting venous blood in pyrogen-free tubes for subsequent molecular analyses. One-repetition maximal strength (1RM) assessment was performed prior to the first visit to determine the training intensity. During the first visit (pre-test), which was scheduled in the morning, all participants were required to provide fasting venous blood samples before engaging in resistance training (detailed below). Then, the participants visited the laboratory immediately upon completing the first training session (acute post-test) to provide blood samples (the second visit). The resistance training program spanned six consecutive weeks. Subsequently, 48 h after the final training session (chronic post-test), participants provided blood samples in the morning following an overnight fasting period and abstinence from caffeinated drinks and alcohol samples (the third visit). Additional assessments (including those of 1RM, muscular endurance, power, and body composition) were performed at baseline and after the six-week training period to determine the effects of the resistance training programs on anthropometric measurements and muscular fitness, as described in our previous study [Of the 20 participants, 1 participant in the TRT group withdrew from the study owing to personal reasons, while another participant in the FRT group also withdraw from the study citing personal reasons. Therefore, the study sample consisted of a total of 18 participants, and the experimental design is illustrated in Fig. Flow chart illustrating the design of the studyBaseline characteristics of the participants.BMI, body mass index; TRT, traditional resistance training; FRT, functional resistance training. Data are presented as mean ± SD.