Abstract
Purpose
To better understand neuromuscular characteristics of eccentric exercise-induced muscle damage, this study compared between concentric (CONC) and eccentric (ECC) exercises of knee extensor muscles, and the first (ECC1) and second bouts of the eccentric exercise (ECC2) for central and peripheral parameters associated with neuromuscular fatigue.
Methods
Twelve young men performed three exercise bouts separated by at least 1 week between CONC and ECC1, and 2 weeks between ECC1 and ECC2. In each exercise, maximal voluntary concentric or eccentric contractions of the knee extensors were performed until a reduction in maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVC) torque of at least 40% MVC was achieved immediately post-exercise. MVC torque, central (voluntary activation and normalised electromyographic activity), and peripheral neuromuscular indices (evoked torque and M-wave amplitude), and muscle soreness were assessed before (PRE), immediately after (POST), 1 h (1H), and 1–4 days after exercise (D1, D2, D3, and D4).
Results
MVC torque decreased at only POST for CONC (− 52.8%), but remained below the baseline at POST (− 48.6%), 1H (− 34.1%), and D1–D4 (− 34.1 to − 18.2%) after ECC1, and at POST (− 45.2%), 1H (− 24.4%) and D1 (− 13.4%) after ECC2 (p < 0.05). Voluntary activation decreased immediately after ECC1 (− 21.6%) and ECC2 (− 21.1%), but not after CONC. Electrically evoked torques decreased similarly at POST and 1H for the three conditions, but remained below the baseline at D1 only post-ECC1.
Conclusion
These results showed that both central and peripheral factors contributed to the MVC decrease after ECC1 and ECC2, but the decrease was mainly due to peripheral factors after CONC.
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Abbreviations
- DB:
-
Potentiated doublet amplitude evoked at rest
- DBsup:
-
Superimposed doublet amplitude
- EMG:
-
Electromyography
- MMAX :
-
Maximal M wave
- MVC:
-
Maximal voluntary contraction
- pη 2 :
-
Partial eta-squared
- RF:
-
Rectus femoris
- RMS:
-
Root mean square
- VA:
-
Voluntary activation
- VAS:
-
Visual analogue scale
- VL:
-
Vastus lateralis
- VM:
-
Vastus medialis
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Acknowledgements
The authors sincerely thank Clément Billet for his essential help during all the testing sessions.
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RS was involved in the conception of the research, the acquisition, analysis, and interpretation of the data. RS was also involved in the revision of the manuscript. MJ and KN were involved in the conception of the research design, the analysis and interpretation of the results and the writing of the manuscript (revising the work). As the contributing author, MJ gave his final approval for submission.
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Communicated by Nicolas Place.
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Souron, R., Nosaka, K. & Jubeau, M. Changes in central and peripheral neuromuscular fatigue indices after concentric versus eccentric contractions of the knee extensors. Eur J Appl Physiol 118, 805–816 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-018-3816-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-018-3816-0