Applied Physiology Study on Repeat Bout Effect

CDB

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Just ran across this one over on Lyle's board, anyone get a look at it yet?

Eur J Appl Physiol. 2011 Jul 1. [Epub ahead of print]
Exercise-induced muscle damage and the repeated bout effect: evidence for cross transfer.
Starbuck C, Eston RG.
Source

Sport and Health Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK.
Abstract

We examined whether a prior bout of eccentric exercise in the elbow flexors provided protection against exercise-induced muscle damage in the contralateral arm. Fifteen males (age 22.7 ± 2.1 years; height 178.6 ± 6.8 cm, mass 75.8 ± 9.3 kg) were randomly assigned to two groups who performed two bouts of 60 eccentric contractions (30°/s) separated by 2 weeks: ipsilateral (n = 7, both bouts performed in the same arm), contralateral (n = 8, one bout performed in each arm). Strength, muscle soreness and resting arm angle (RAA) were measured at baseline and at 1, 24 and 48 h post exercise. Surface electromyography was recorded during both bouts of exercise. The degree of strength loss was attenuated (p < 0.05) in the ipsilateral group after the second bout of eccentric exercise (-22 cf. -3% for bout 1 and 2 at 24 h, respectively). Strength loss following eccentric exercise was also attenuated (p < 0.05) at 24 h in the contralateral group (-30 cf. 13% for bout 1 and 2, respectively). Muscle soreness (≈34 cf 19 mm) and change in RAA (≈5 cf. 3%) were also lower following the second bout of eccentric exercise (p < 0.05), although there was no difference in the overall change in these values between groups. Median frequency (MF) was decreased by 31% between bouts, with no difference between groups. Data support observations that the repeated bout effect transfers to the opposite (untrained) limb. The similar reduction in MF between bouts for the two groups provides evidence for a centrally mediated, neural adaptation.
 
Wow... so RBE effects even the untrained muscle groups. But I wonder how trained these participants were in the study? Do you have the whole thing?
 
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Not yet, put in a request but no one has sent it through yet and I haven't tracked it down on the internet.
 
Do we have evidence that the RBE really decreases the amount of damage done to a muscle? Or could it be only a reduction of the perception of DOMS, in which case it could be just an adaptation to the tolerance to soreness?

It is well known that people who are subjected to high levels of pain tend to develop a better tolerance and feel the pain less over time. Could it be the same for muscles?

This seems to be an important study for the understanding of the RBE.
 
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