Load-velocity relationship in variations of the half-squat exercise: Influence of execution technique Pérez Castilla, Alejandro García Ramos, Amador Padial Puche, Paulino Morales Artacho, Antonio Jesús Feriche Fernández-Castanys, María Belén velocity-based training jump squat eccentric-concentric technique concentric-only technique Previous studies have revealed that the velocity of the bar can be used to determine the intensity of different resistance training exercises. However, the load-velocity relationship seems to be exercise dependent. This study aimed to compare the load-velocity relationship obtained from 2 variations of the half-squat exercise (traditional vs. ballistic) using 2 execution techniques (eccentric-concentric vs. concentric-only). Twenty men performed a submaximal progressive loading test in 4 half-squat exercises: eccentric-concentric traditional-squat, concentric-only traditional-squat, countermovement jump (i.e., ballistic squat using the eccentric-concentric technique), and squat jump (i.e., ballistic squat using the concentric-only technique). Individual linear regressions were used to estimate the 1 repetition maximum (1RM) for each half-squat exercise. Thereafter, another linear regression was applied to establish the relationship between the relative load (%RM) and mean propulsive velocity (MPV). For all exercises, a strong relationship was observed between %RM and MPV: eccentric-concentric traditional-squat (R2 = 0.949), concentric-only traditional-squat (R2 = 0.920), countermovement jump (R2 = 0.957), and squat jump (R2 = 0.879). The velocities associated with each %RM were higher for the ballistic variation and the eccentric-concentric technique than for the traditional variation and concentric-only technique, respectively. Differences in velocity among the halfsquat exercises decreased with the increment in the relative load. These results demonstrate that the MPV can be used to predict exercise intensity in the 4 half-squat exercises. However, independent regressions are required for each half-squat exercise because the load-velocity relationship proved to be task specific 2024-11-08T08:03:01Z 2024-11-08T08:03:01Z 2020-04 journal article Published version: Pérez-Castilla, A, García-Ramos, A, Padial, P, Morales-Artacho, AJ. and Feriche, B. Load-velocity relationship in variations of the half-squat exercise: influence of execution technique. J Strength Cond Res 34(4): 1024–1031, 2020. DOI: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000002072 https://hdl.handle.net/10481/96764 10.1519/JSC.0000000000002072 eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ open access Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internacional Walter Kluwer