ArticleSports medicine - open2024
What do we Know about Complex-Contrast Training? A Systematic Scoping Review.
Article in Sports medicine - open, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07754669 (Effects of Morning Contrast Training Exercise on the Afternoon Priming of Judoka's Athletic and Sport-specific Performance), which is not on this map. Cited by 20 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Effects of Morning Contrast Training Exercise on the Afternoon Priming of Judoka's Athletic and Sport-specific Performance
Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Comparative effects of exercise-based interventions on jump, linear sprint, and change-of-direction performance in female adolescent team-sport athletes: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.Frontiers in physiology · 2026Pooled it
- Optimizing Post-activation Performance Enhancement in Athletic Tasks: A Systematic Review with Meta-analysis for Prescription Variables and Research Methods.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2025Pooled it
- Unilateral plyometric training effectively reduces lower limb asymmetry in athletes: a meta-analysis.Frontiers in physiology · 2025Pooled it
- Acute Performance, Mechanical and Thermal Effects of Isometric Conditioning Versus Standardized Volleyball Pre-Training Activation in Highly Trained Male Players.Journal of sports science & medicine · 2026Trial
- Effects of Complex and Contrast Training on Lower Limb Explosive Power and Eccentric Strength in Elite Male Track and Field Athletes: A 24-Week Randomized Trial.Journal of strength and conditioning research · 2026Trial
- Male collegiate volleyball players' depth jump biomechanical adaptations to eight-week complex-contrast training.Scientific reports · 2026Trial
- Effects of complex training on jump performance and neuromuscular activation in volleyball athletes: A controlled study.PloS one · 2026Trial
- Trial
- Supramaximal Isometric Holds Enhance Squat Performance: An Integrated Analysis of Barbell Kinematics, Force Production, and Postural Stability.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Effects of Eight Weeks of Unilateral Complex Training on Musculoskeletal Function, Inter-Limb Strength Asymmetry, and Athletic Performance in Competitive Basketball Players.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Response to Comment on: "Within Session Exercise Sequencing During Programming for Complex Training: Historical Perspectives, Terminology, and Training Considerations".Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Article
- Comment on "Within Session Exercise Sequencing During Programming for Complex Training: Historical Perspectives, Terminology, and Training Considerations".Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Article
- Acute effects of foam rolling vs. passive rest following a single bout of complex contrast training.European journal of applied physiology · 2026Article
- Effects of Different Complex Training Methods on Change of Direction, Sprinting, Jumping, and Isometric Strength in National Level Male Basketball Players.Journal of sports science & medicine · 2026Article
- The Effects of In-Season Complex Contrast Training on Anaerobic Performance Metrics in Elite Female Soccer Players.Journal of strength and conditioning research · 2026Article
- Secondary Analysis to Evaluate Performance Expression Stability of Alternative Complex-Contrast Training Set Strategies.Methods and protocols · 2026Article
- Effects of combined resistance and plyometric training modalities on vertical jump and sprint: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2026Article
- Less training, better improvement: effects of velocity-based complex training on lower-limb maximal strength and explosive performance in highly-trained volleyball athletes.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2025Article
- Commentary: The effects of complex training on performance variables in basketball players: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2025Article
- Acute Effects of Fast vs. Slow Bench Press Repetitions with Equal Time Under Tension on Velocity, sEMG Activity, and Applied Force in the Bench Press Throw.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe complex-contrast training (CCT) method utilizes two exercises with different loads and movement velocities in a set-by-set fashion to induce multiple neuromuscular adaptations. The speculated primary mechanism involves the post-activation potentiation or post-activation performance enhancement (PAPE) of the muscles used during the heavy load (low velocity) exercise, thereby improving the performance of lower load (high velocity) exercise. However, no previous study has attempted to systematically synthesize the available evidence on CCT (e.g., if post-activation potentiation or PAPE was measured during the training sessions during the intervention period). This study aimed to synthesize the available evidence on CCT using a systematic scoping review approach. More specifically, we identified gaps in the literature using an evidence gap map (EGM), and provided future directions for research.
methodsThree electronic databases (PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science) were searched up to 20th February 2024. Data were extracted under a PICO framework: (a) Participants-related data (e.g., age, sex, type of sport); (b) Intervention-related data (e.g., duration of training); (c) Comparators (when available); and (d) Outcomes (e.g., measures of physical fitness). Interactive EGMs were created using the EPPI mapper software.
resultsFrom the 5,695 records screened, 68 studies were eligible for inclusion, involving 1,821 participants (only 145 females from 5 studies). All CCT interventions lasted ≤ 16 weeks. More than half of the studies assessed countermovement jump, sprint, and maximal strength performances. No studies were identified which examined upper-body CCT exercises alone, and no study assessed PAPE during the CCT sessions. Overall, the available evidence was rated with a low level of confidence.
conclusionsIn conclusion, whether CCT produces a PAPE that translates into longitudinal performance gains remains unclear. Moreover, the available evidence on the effects of CCT on various outcomes provides low confidence regarding the most effective way to implement this training method, particularly among females, and beyond long-term interventions.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.