Amateur Handball Athletes Present Delayed Muscle Recovery Index Compared to Non-Athletes

• Published in: Journal of exercise physiology online Vol. 21; no. 2; p. 19
• Main Authors: Magalhaes, Pablo Matheus Nascimento, de Arruda Navarro Silva, Cybelle, da Silva, Ana Karolina Vitor, de Sousa, Sarah Pinheiro, de Melo, Anna Laura Maciel, Barbosa, Bruno Teixeira, de Araujo Leite Filho, Marcos Antonio, de Lucena Barbosa, Eric, Montenegro, Ramon Cunha, Borges, Luis Paulo Nogueira Cabral
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Duluth American Society of Exercise Physiologists 01-04-2018
• Subjects: Biomechanics; Exercise physiology; Fatigue; Handball; Muscle recovery; Musculoskeletal physiology; Physiological aspects; Physiological research; Thigh muscles
• ISSN: 1097-9751; 1097-9751

Magalhaes PMN, Silva CAN, Silva AKV, Sousa SP, Melo ALM, Barbosa BT, Leite Filho MAA, Barbosa EL, Montenegro RC, Borges LPNC. Amateur Handball Athletes Present Delayed Muscle Recovery Index Compared to Non-Athletes. JEPonline 2018;21(2):19-29. The purpose of this study was to analyze the fatigue index and the rectus femoris (RF) and biceps femoris (BF) muscle recovery index of amateur handball athletes through the median ([f.sub.med]) frequency of electromyogram ([EMG.sub.S]). The sample consisted of 10 handball athletes ([G.sub.han]) and 10 control individuals ([G.sub.con]). The fatigue and muscle recovery protocol were performed with the subjects at 80% of their maximum voluntary isometric contraction. There was no statistical difference in the percentage of [f.sub.med] drop between [G.sub.han] and [G.sub.con] (RF: -30.86 [+ or -] 10.75% vs. -30.35 [+ or -] 12.57%, BF: -31.91 [+ or -] 10.55% vs. -28.22 [+ or -] 12.83%). The percentage of BF muscle recovery was significantly lower in [G.sub.han] compared to [G.sub.con] (54.64 [+ or -] 17.24% vs. 71.11 [+ or -] 14.61%, P=0.0156). The findings in the present study indicate that practicing amateur handball does not improve fatigue resistance in the thigh muscles, and is associated with a lower percentage of muscle recovery. Key Words: Electromyography, Median Frequency, Muscular Fatigue, Muscular Recovery