Question

Short/ Long answer type questions.
What conditions would produce the maximum tension from any given skeletal muscle fibre?

Answer 1

• As the load on the muscle increases, it finally reaches a point where the external force on the muscle is greater than the force that the muscle can generate.
  
• Thus even though the muscle may be fully activated, it is forced to lengthen due to the high external load. This is referred to as an eccentric contraction.
  
• There are two main features to note regarding eccentric contractions. First, the absolute tensions achieved are very high relative to the muscle's maximum tetanic tension generating capacity.
  
• Second, the absolute tension is relatively independent of lengthening velocity. This suggests that skeletal muscles are very resistant to lengthening.