Muscle damage and soreness following prolonged intermittent shuttle running and the effect of vitamin C supplementation.
Year: 1999
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Exercise-induced muscle soreness and damage have been investigated for\nalmost a century, and yet it appears that there is little that can be done to avoid these\nconsequences of over-exertion, except train on a regular basis. It is likely that freeradicals\nare involved at a number of stages in the muscle damage process, and therefore\nthe provision of appropriate antioxidants may theoretically offer some protection. One\nsuch antioxidant is vitamin C, although the literature available in support of this notion\nis scarce. The aim of these studies, therefore, was to assess whether different nutritional\ninterventions using vitamin C would offer any benefit to exercise-induced muscle\ndamage and soreness.\nIn the past, investigators have often used exercise protocols designed to\nmaximise the extent of injury. The studies reported in this thesis, however, used an\nexercise protocol (Loughborough Intermittent Shuttle Test: LIST) based on the\nmultiple-sprint sports (e.g. football). Participation in such sports is very high, although\nfrequently on an irregular basis, and therefore exercise of this nature may have the\ncapacity to cause muscle damage and soreness. The LIST provided a suitable exercise\nmodel, and in different studies led to increases in soreness, markers of muscle damage,\nlipid peroxidation, and inflammation. It also led to poorer muscle function up to 72 h\nafter exercise in some muscle groups. Short-term supplementation with vitamin C 2 hours before exercise successfully\nincreased plasma and cellular concentrations, although failed to have any beneficial\noutcomes in terms of muscle damage or soreness. Supplementation in the hours and\ndays (up to three days) after exercise also produced no beneficial effects, and it may be\nthat supplementation occurred at an inappropriate time. Prolonged supplementation\nwith vitamin C proved more promising (14 days), and was associated with reduced\nplasma concentrations of interleukin-6 and malondialdehyde. Furthermore, there were\nmodest benefits to certain' aspects of muscle soreness and function, although these were\nnot always statistically significant. However, tliere was no effect on circulating markers\nof muscle damage (creatine kinase and myoglobin).\nThese findings suggest that the regular ingestion of vitamin C may be associated\nwith some favourable changes following damaging exercise. However, the consumption\nof large amounts of vitamin C immediately before or after exercise offer no appreciable\nbenefits, despite large changes in plasma concentrations of this vitamin.
Author: Dylan Thompson
Language: English
Subfield: Physiology (medical)
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W600038037