Early overuse of a lesioned forelimb, induced by immediate immobilization of the intact forelimb after a cortical lesion, has been reported to increase tissue damage and delay functional recovery. To investigate if early training without immobilization of the intact forelimb could increase tissue loss and reduce recovery, the middle cerebral artery was ligated distal to the striatal branches in 25 male spontaneously hypertensive rats. Control rats were housed in standard cages, training rats were transferred to larger cages allowing various activities and received additional special training 1 hour a day starting either 24 hours or 7 days after the ligation. The rats were tested on a rotating pole, in a leg placement test, and in a water maze and they were killed 6 weeks after the ligation. Delayed training resulted in the best overall performance; however, both training groups performed better than standard rats on the rotating pole. The cortical infarct volume was larger in the early training group than in the other two groups (P<.005), possibly related to increased glutamate release and peri-infarct cortical hyperexcitability.