Figure 3.

a-b: Isometric maxima function + optimum pre-stretching function. Fig. 3a shows four examples of the original recordings of force (F) and muscle length (l; taken from a sequence of ten). The amplitudes of the force of contraction responses (small arrows) to single supra maximum stimulation are determined with increasing pre-stretching forces or increasing muscle lengths. Fig. 3b shows the stretching forces (squares) and the contraction forces (arrows) in relation to the stretching lengths. In Fig. 3c the stretching forces are omitted and the contraction forces (big lozenges) are shown in relation to the stretching length. In 4 of the series, the optimum pre-stretching length is largely achieved with a muscle length of l = 71 mm. The small lozenges show the results of a second sequence of ten experiments with smaller graduations around the optimum stretching length which was determined by the first sequence (l = 71 mm), so that the accuracy of the optimum length can be further elucidated at a more precise length = 72.1 mm.