Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences, Durham University, Durham, United Kingdom.
PLoS One. 2022 Sep 29;17(9):e0275221. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0275221. eCollection 2022.
Resistance training can induce skeletal muscle hypertrophy and strength gains, but is also associated with acute muscle damage, characterised by muscle soreness, impaired muscle function, and structural damage to muscle cell membranes and its components. These consequences can be detrimental to future exercise performance and dampen long-term training adaptations. Previous research has considered resistance exercise intensity as a factor in exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD), though a clear direction of the findings has not yet been established. Further, female populations are heavily underrepresented in this field of study. Therefore, we here propose a study protocol designed to examine sex differences in the muscle damage response to resistance exercise performed with low or high loads in a population of untrained, young adults.
This study will employ a randomised parallel group design. Twenty-four males and 24 females will perform an acute leg-based resistance exercise session at either 30% (low-load) or 80% (high-load) of their pre-determined one-repetition maximum (1RM). Maximal leg strength will be determined by a 1RM test 3 wk before and 72 and 168 h after the exercise bout. Additionally, muscle damage will be assessed immediately before the exercise bout and immediately, 24, 48, 72, and 168 h after the exercise bout through measures of muscle soreness, limb circumference, range of motion, and serum concentrations of creatine kinase and interleukin-6. The outcomes of this trial could inform sex-specific resistance training recommendations and help bridge the sex data gap in sport and exercise science research.
阻力训练可以引起骨骼肌肥大和力量增加，但也与急性肌肉损伤有关，其特征是肌肉酸痛、肌肉功能受损以及肌肉细胞膜及其成分的结构损伤。这些后果可能对未来的运动表现有害，并抑制长期训练适应。先前的研究已经将阻力运动强度视为运动引起的肌肉损伤（EIMD）的一个因素，尽管还没有确定研究结果的明确方向。此外，女性在这个研究领域的代表性严重不足。因此，我们在此提出一项研究方案，旨在研究未受过训练的年轻成年人中，低负荷和高负荷阻力运动对肌肉损伤反应的性别差异。
本研究将采用随机平行组设计。24 名男性和 24 名女性将在 30%（低负荷）或 80%（高负荷）的预先确定的一次重复最大重量（1RM）下进行急性腿部阻力运动。最大腿部力量将通过 1RM 测试在运动前 3 周和运动后 72 和 168 小时确定。此外，肌肉损伤将在运动前立即以及运动后立即、24 小时、48 小时、72 小时和 168 小时通过肌肉酸痛、肢体周长、运动范围以及血清肌酸激酶和白细胞介素-6 浓度来评估。本试验的结果可以为特定性别阻力训练提供建议，并有助于弥合运动和运动科学研究中的性别数据差距。
