A muscle conditioning or muscle assessment apparatus comprises a load bearing component incorporating a proximal portion for engagement with at least part of a user's body, and a distal portion for securing said component to a fores applying apparatus or an operator； and a transducer located between said proximal and distal portions； said transducer being configured to derive signals representative of the tensile and/or compression forces applied to said load bearing component； wherein said apparatus further comprises means for determining one or more characteristics of position and/or displacement of said load bearing component； said apparatus being configured to output signals representative of said force and the direction of said force.
