Muscle forces or gravity: What predominates mechanical loading on bone?: Introduction

Abstract

This paper describes the background, rationale, significance and objective of the recent American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) symposium entitled “Muscle Forces or Gravity—What Predominates Mechanical Loading on Bone?” (55th Annual Meeting, Indianapolis, May 28, 2008) and introduces a series of papers representing the positions taken by three of the speakers at that symposium. Our goal is to reinvigorate discussion on a topic that will inform many, provoke some and, most importantly, stimulate ideas that will encourage progress in the field of exercise prescription for bone.