A research group led by Associate Professor Ryota Akagi of Shibaura Institute of Technology, in collaboration with Shizuoka Institute of Technology and Edith Cowan University (Australia), is an index to evaluate the degree of damage to skeletal muscle (general term for muscles) due to exercise, one day after exercise. Maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) * Clarified the possibility that the recovery rate of torque can be used.
Myalgia occurs after 1 to 3 days after strenuous exercise and sports activities.Myalgia is caused by eccentric movements in which skeletal muscle exerts force while stretching its length.In many cases, myalgia subsides spontaneously, but if left untreated, it may cause physical problems, and there is a need for a method for predicting recovery of symptoms after exercise.
This time, 28 young men were subjected to a total of 100 eccentric exercises (10 times x 10 sets) using a dynamometer for the knee joint extensor muscle group of the right leg.Various variables were measured multiple times before and after exercise, and indicators suitable for predicting damage to the knee extensor muscles were investigated.In this study, a muscular strength meter was used to measure changes in MVIC torque for 3 days after exercise.In addition, "rigidity" (skeletal muscle hardness) and "doublet torque" generated when the nerves that control the knee joint extensor muscles are stimulated from the outside were also investigated.
Participants were classified into two different groups according to the recovery rate of MVIC torque immediately after exercise and one day later.Then, it was found that the recovery rate of MVIC torque one day after exercise can be used for predicting the subsequent change in muscle strength.However, it was not possible to predict the degree of delayed onset muscle soreness or changes in skeletal muscle stiffness.
Although limited, MVIC torque changes have been shown to be useful predictors of post-exercise muscle injury symptoms.In the future, he hopes to establish an optimal method for predicting the magnitude of muscle damage.
* Voluntary maximum contraction when the muscle length is constant
