Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness Following Acute Resistance Exercise in Untrained Females: A Comparative Study Between Vegans and Omnivores

Abstract

This study aimed to assess the levels of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) markers in individuals adhering to vegan and omnivore diets after engaging in acute resistance exercise. A total of 54 untrained young, healthy, normal-body-weight women (age: 26.8±4.1 years; body mass index: 22.5±2.7 kg/m²) participated in the study. Participants were categorized into two groups: vegans (n=27) and omnivores (n=27) based on their dietary preferences, with all subjects having adhered to their respective diets for a minimum of 2 years. DOMS was induced by a single eccentric resistance exercise session, comprising four exercises (leg press, chest press, leg curls, and arm curls), each consisting of four sets of 10 repetitions. Various measurements, including dietary factors, state of wellness, body composition, muscle circumferences, muscle pressure point thresholds (PPTs), and muscle strength, were recorded both before and 48 hours after the exercise session. The results showed that wellness and muscle circumferences remained unchanged or displayed similar changes between the vegan and omnivore groups following acute resistance exercise. However, notable differences were observed in PPTs in favor of vegans, specifically for the right biceps (95% CI: 1.4 to 10.2; p=0.01), the left vastus medialis (95% CI: 0.5 to 6.4; p=0.02), and the right vastus lateralis (95% CI: 3.2 to 12.1; p=0.001). Furthermore, significant differences in right grip strength were found in favor of vegans after the exercise session (95% CI: 3.1 to 26.2; p=0.01). In conclusion, our findings suggest that vegans may experience more favorable changes in DOMS levels following acute resistance exercise in comparison to omnivores. This discrepancy in DOMS markers may indicate enhanced muscle recovery in vegans.

Keywords

body composition - swelling - pressure pain thresholds - muscle strength - dietary profile

Publikationsverlauf

Eingereicht: 01. April 2024

Angenommen: 11. Juni 2024

Artikel online veröffentlicht:
31. Juli 2024

• References

• 1 Clarkson PM, Hubal MJ. Exercise-induced muscle damage in humans. Am J Phys Med Rehabil 2002; 81: S52-S69
• 2 Cleak MJ, Eston RG. Muscle soreness, swelling, stiffness and strength loss after intense eccentric exercise. Br J Sports Med 1992; 26: 267-272
• 3 Howell JN, Chleboun G, Conatser R. Muscle stiffness, strength loss, swelling and soreness following exercise-induced injury in humans. J Physiol 1993; 464: 183-196
• 4 Damas F, Nosaka K, Libardi CA. et al. Susceptibility to exercise-induced muscle damage: a cluster analysis with a large sample. Int J Sports Med 2016; 37: 633-640
• 5 Armstrong RB. Mechanisms of exercise-induced delayed onset muscular soreness: a brief review. Med Sci Sports Exerc 1984; 16: 529-538
• 6 Cheung K, Hume P, Maxwell L. Delayed onset muscle soreness: treatment strategies and performance factors. Sports Med 2003; 33: 145-164
• 7 Smith LL. Causes of delayed onset muscle soreness and the impact on athletic performance: A review. J Strength Cond Res 1992; 6: 135-141
• 8 Peake JM, Neubauer O, Della Gatta PA. et al. Muscle damage and inflammation during recovery from exercise. J Appl Physiol (1985) 2017; 122: 559-570
• 9 MacIntyre DL, Reid WD, McKenzie DC. Delayed muscle soreness. The inflammatory response to muscle injury and its clinical implications. Sports Med 1995; 20: 24-40
• 10 Menzel J, Jabakhanji A, Biemann R. et al. Systematic review and meta-analysis of the associations of vegan and vegetarian diets with inflammatory biomarkers. Sci Rep 2020; 10: 21736
• 11 Craddock JC, Neale EP, Peoples GE. et al. Vegetarian-based dietary patterns and their relation with inflammatory and immune biomarkers: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Adv Nutr 2019; 10: 433-451
• 12 Sutliffe JT, Wilson LD, de Heer HD. et al. C-reactive protein response to a vegan lifestyle intervention. Complement Ther Med 2015; 23: 32-37
• 13 Miller M, Beach V, Sorkin JD. et al. Comparative effects of three popular diets on lipids, endothelial function, and C-reactive protein during weight maintenance. J Am Diet Assoc 2009; 109: 713-717
• 14 Alles B, Baudry J, Mejean C. et al. Comparison of sociodemographic and nutritional characteristics between self-reported vegetarians, vegans, and meat-eaters from the NutriNet-Sante Study. Nutrients 2017; 9: 1023
• 15 Navalta JW, Stone WJ, Lyons TS. Ethical issues relating to scientific discovery in exercise science. Int J Exerc Sci 2019; 12: 1-8
• 16 Romero-Parra N, Cupeiro R, Alfaro-Magallanes VM. et al. Exercise-induced muscle damage during the menstrual cycle: A systematic review and meta-analysis. J Strength Cond Res 2021; 35: 549-561
• 17 Hooper SL, Mackinnon LT. Monitoring overtraining in athletes. Recommendations. Sports Med 1995; 20: 321-327
• 18 Marteau TM, Bekker H. The development of a six-item short-form of the state scale of the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Br J Clin Psychol 1992; 31: 301-306
• 19 Tanabe Y, Fujii N, Suzuki K. Dietary supplementation for attenuating exercise-induced muscle damage and delayed-onset muscle soreness in humans. Nutrients 2021; 14: 70
• 20 Harty PS, Cottet ML, Malloy JK. et al. Nutritional and supplementation strategies to prevent and attenuate exercise-induced muscle damage: A brief review. Sports Med Open 2019; 5: 1
• 21 Mallard AR, Briskey D, Richards BA. et al. Curcumin improves delayed onset muscle soreness and postexercise lactate accumulation. J Diet Suppl 2021; 18: 531-542
• 22 Drobnic F, Riera J, Appendino G. et al. Reduction of delayed onset muscle soreness by a novel curcumin delivery system (Meriva(R)): a randomised, placebo-controlled trial. J Int Soc Sports Nutr 2014; 11: 31
• 23 Bazzucchi I, Patrizio F, Ceci R. et al. The effects of quercetin supplementation on eccentric exercise-induced muscle damage. Nutrients 2019; 11: 205
• 24 Patrizio F, Ditroilo M, Felici F. et al. The acute effect of Quercetin on muscle performance following a single resistance training session. Eur J Appl Physiol 2018; 118: 1021-1031
• 25 Bell PG, Stevenson E, Davison GW. et al. The effects of Montmorency tart cherry concentrate supplementation on recovery following prolonged, intermittent exercise. Nutrients. 2016 8. 441
• 26 Naclerio Ph DF, Seijo Ph DM, Earnest Ph DC. et al. Ingesting a post-workout vegan-protein multi-ingredient expedites recovery after resistance training in trained young males. J Diet Suppl 2021; 18: 698-713
• 27 Simental-Mendia LE, Sahebkar A, Rodriguez-Moran M. et al. Effect of magnesium supplementation on plasma C-reactive protein concentrations: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Curr Pharm Des 2017; 23: 4678-4686
• 28 Steward CJ, Zhou Y, Keane G. et al. One week of magnesium supplementation lowers IL-6, muscle soreness and increases post-exercise blood glucose in response to downhill running. Eur J Appl Physiol 2019; 119: 2617-2627
• 29 Reno AM, Green M, Killen LG. et al. Effects of magnesium supplementation on muscle soreness and performance. J Strength Cond Res 2022; 36: 2198-2203
• 30 Burt DG, Twist C. The effects of exercise-induced muscle damage on cycling time-trial performance. J Strength Cond Res 2011; 25: 2185-2192
• 31 Chen TC, Nosaka K, Tu JH. Changes in running economy following downhill running. J Sports Sci 2007; 25: 55-63