Effect of recovery on the treatment of delayed onset muscle soreness and muscle performance

Resumen

The practice of intensive physical exercise requires an appropriate recovery in order to avoid overtraining syndrome and the emergence of sports injuries. Recovery is highly essential in helping athletes to deal with mental and physical fatigue without compromising their performance level when practice and training are resumed. Following any unaccustomed activity, it has been demonstrated that the choice of the proper recovery plays an important role in athletes’ performance, and the management of soreness and other related symptoms such as inflammation, swelling and decrease in range of motion, strength, speed, and flexibility. The selection of a specific recovery protocol and the corresponding subsequent parameters, such as intensity, duration, and frequency, is still unclear, and its impact and efficiency on muscle disorder, weakness, pain, and performance remains controversial and inconclusive. Consequently, this doctoral thesis aims to highlight and to develop a deep insight into the scientific background and validity of recovery protocols reported in the literature. Moreover, the main objective is to demonstrate the effect of active and passive recovery protocols on pain and muscle performance among young active individuals. To respond to these objectives, a systematic review, a randomized controlled trial, and a quasi-experimental study were performed. The first study systematically reviewed the literature from five databases according to the guidelines outlined in the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement. The benefits and limitations are identified in this paper, providing a practical approach for active individuals, coaches, and therapists regarding what type of active recovery could enhance performance level following strenuous activities. Moreover, a quasi-experimental study in which a sample of 35 participants was examined for three days. The methodology in this study was based on an intra-subject comparison of both legs, to investigate the effectiveness of a combination of massage and cold water immersion (CWI) on pain, jump height, maximum isometric force, and gait kinematic variables. Finally, a randomized controlled trial with a crossover design included 31 young active participants. A four-day experiment was conducted in two identical sessions separated by a three-week period, to test an active recovery protocol consisting of an uphill high-intensity interval exercise. In this study, pain, creatine kinase (CK), muscle inflammation, jump height, sprint speed, and one repetition maximum (1RM) were assessed and analyzed. The results of this doctoral thesis show that active recovery in general, including running and jogging, exercise in water, yoga, and isolated muscle contractions offers limited management on soreness. Furthermore, inflammation and muscle stiffness following intensive exercise were reduced by general physical activity and yoga, respectively, and the decrease in muscular strength is less following exercise in water. Additionally, a combination of massage and CWI does not seem to significantly decrease soreness, increase muscle performance, or improve gait parameters compared to no treatment. Finally, an active recovery protocol consisting of uphill high-intensity interval exercise does not offer a remarkable benefit in comparison with passive rest, however its implementation does not increase soreness nor aggravate muscle performance, thus it can be performed without any harm.