Effect of elastic-band exercise on muscle damage and inflammatory responses in taekwondo athletes

Abstract

Introduction: Elastic bands offer variable elastic resistance (ER) throughout a range of motion and their incorporation with exercise movements has been used for variable strength training and rehabilitation purposes. Objective: Investigate the effect of acute bout of progressive elastic-band exercise on muscle damage and inflammatory response in Taekwondo athletes (TKD) compared with untrained ones. Methods: Fourteen (TKD, n = 7 and untrained, n = 7) men performed 3 sets of progressive resistance elastic exercise. Blood samples were taken pre-exercise and also immediately and 24h post exercise. Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), creatine kinase (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity, total leukocyte counts, interleukin-6 and C-reactive protein (CRP) were analyzed. Results: Only DOMS increased in untrained group, but elevation of DOMS was observed in both groups (TKD and untrained) at 24h after exercise (p<0.05). CK and LDH activity increased in both groups significantly. Also TKD group only showed CK increasing 24h post exercise (p<0.05). Total circulating leukocyte counts increased immediately in post exercise experiments and decreased in 24h ones in both groups (p<0.05). Serum IL-6 immediately increased in both groups and 24h post exercises but there was no significant difference between immediate and 24h post exercise experiments in TKD group. Furthermore, CRP just increased 24h after exercise in both groups (p<0.05). Conclusion: Progressive resistance elastic exercise induced muscle damage and inflammation in TKD athletes, but also had smaller changes in comparison with untrained group and other forms of exercise.