Relationship between heart rate variability and performance in eccentric training with blood flow restriction.

BACKGROUND: The resistance training with blood flow restriction (BFR) presents results in strength gain and muscle hypertrophy. However, there are no data that evaluate the long-term adaptation of the autonomic nervous system and its influence on the performance, especially with eccentric contractions. OBJECTIVE: To perform a systematic autonomous monitoring during eccentric training with BFR at different loads and to correlate them with possible changes in the performance METHODS: This is a 4-arms, randomized controlled and single blind trial. Sixty men were randomized in four groups: low and high load eccentric exercise (LL and HL); LL and HL with BFR (LL-BFR and HL-BFR). The participants underwent 18 sessions of eccentric exercise for the dominant quadriceps femoris muscle in the isokinetic dynamometer. The performance (strength through isometric, concentric and eccentric peaks torque on the isokinetic dynamometer and Single-leg Hop Test) was evaluated 1 week before, in the fourth week and 1 week after the end of the training programme. Heart rate variability (HRV) through vagal and global indices was evaluated daily for 15 min before each session. RESULTS: There was a significant correlation between performance and HRV for LL and HL-BFR groups, with an increase in parasympathetic indices in the first group and an increase in performance in the second group. CONCLUSION: HRV indices are correlated with performance. However, in the LL group, there was an increase in parasympathetic indices without repercussions on performance while, in the HL-BFR group, there was an increase in performance and no repercussion in the autonomic indices.

Effects of different ischemic preconditioning occlusion pressures on muscle damage induced by eccentric exercise: a study protocol for a randomized controlled placebo clinical trial.

INTRODUCTION: Due to its greater generation of muscle strength and less metabolic demand, eccentric exercise has been widely used in rehabilitation and for improving physical fitness. However, eccentric exercise can induce muscle damage by providing structural changes and reduced muscle function, so even with the protection caused by the repeated bout effect from eccentric exercise, it is necessary to seek alternatives to reduce this damage caused by stress. Thus, ischemic preconditioning could represent an aid to reduce the damage muscle or increase the protective effect caused by eccentric exercise. OBJECTIVES: To compare the effects of ischemic preconditioning, using different occlusion pressures, on acute and delayed responses to perceptual outcomes, markers of muscle damage, and performance in post-eccentric exercise recovery. METHODS: A randomized controlled placebo clinical trial will be carried out with 80 healthy men aged 18 to 35 years who will be randomly divided into four groups: ischemic preconditioning using total occlusion pressure, ischemic preconditoning with 40% more than total occlusion pressure, placebo (10 mmHg), and control. The ischemic preconditioning protocol will consist of four cycles of ischemia and reperfusion of five minutes each. All groups will perform an eccentric exercise protocol, and assessments will be carried out before, immediately after, and 24, 48, 72, and 96 h after the end of the eccentric exercise to evaluate creatine kinase, blood lactate, perception of recovery using the Likert scale, being sequentially evaluated, pain by the visual analog scale, pain threshold using a pressure algometer, muscle thickness by ultrasound, muscle tone, stiffness and elasticity by myotonometry, vectors of cell integrity through electrical bioimpedance, and maximal voluntary isometric contraction using the isokinetic dynamometer. The trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04420819). DISCUSSION: The present study aims to present an alternative technique to reduce muscle damage caused by eccentric exercise, which is easy to apply and low cost. If the benefits are proven, ischemic preconditioning could be used in any clinical practice that aims to minimize the damage caused by exercise, presenting an advance in the prescription of eccentric exercise and directly impacting on the results of post-exercise recovery. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04420819 . Registered on 19 May 2020; Last update 24 March 2021.

Effects of the Mat Pilates Method on Body Composition: Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this systematic review was to determine the efficacy of the mat Pilates method on body composition in healthy adult subjects compared with traditional exercise or control condition models. DESIGN: Systematic review with meta-analysis. DATA SOURCES: MEDLINE, EMBASE, SPORTDiscus, PEDro, SciELO, CINAHAL, and the Cochrane Library. RESULTS: A total of 10 eligible studies were selected for revision. The findings of this review demonstrated that the mat Pilates method was not more effective than the traditional exercise or control condition models for the analyzed variables (body mass index, lean mass, body fat percentage, and abdominal circumference). Moreover, in the exploratory analysis with older people, adults, and overweight/obese individuals, the mat Pilates method was also not superior for the analyzed outcomes. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study suggest that the mat Pilates method is no better than the control condition or other types of training to reduce body composition.

Load monitoring on Pilates training: a study protocol for a randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Currently there are campaigns to raise the awareness of the need to practice physical exercise with several objectives, mainly as a preventive measure. The Pilates method is a form of therapeutic exercise for maintaining and improving health. However, despite being popular, there is still no scientific evidence on the standardization and progression of the method. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to develop a protocol to monitor the progression of daily Pilates loads between the basic, intermediate, and advanced levels, as well as to analyze the effects of the method on psychometric, cardiorespiratory, and autonomic measures. METHODS/DESIGN: In total, 54 healthy men underwent 36 sessions of Pilates mat work. Before each training session, cardiorespiratory measures, pain (visual analogue scale), and a psychometric questionnaire were collected. Heart rate (HR), subjective perception of effort (SPE), and RR intervals were measured during the sessions and used later in the analysis of the progression of training load by monitoring the internal training load and heart rate variability. At the end of the sessions, cardiorespiratory measures, the visual analogue scale, and the psychometric questionnaire were measured again. After 15 min of rest, the final HR measurement was made and the participants noted the effort on the SPE scale. The psychometric, cardiorespiratory, and autonomic measures were evaluated before and after each of the 36 training sessions. DISCUSSION: This is a parallel randomized clinical trial of standardized Pilates training, with the aim of estimating training loads and measuring the efficacy of Pilates through clinical, cardiorespiratory, and autonomic outcomes. The protocol can easily be reproduced and could be used to support professionals in prescribing the method. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03232866 . Registered on 28 July 2017.

Effects of massage as a recuperative technique on autonomic modulation of heart rate and cardiorespiratory parameters: a study protocol for a randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Recuperative techniques have been used to anticipate and potentiate recovery. The massage is one of the most widely used in sports. Among the ways to demonstrate the recovery of the organism is the resumption of autonomic modulation of heart rate, which can be analyzed in situations that cause disturbances in the behavior of the cardiovascular system with the objective of verifying the responsiveness of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). Recovery can be assessed through heart rate variability (HRV) which analyzes the oscillations in consecutive heartbeats, thus allowing an important non-invasive alternative for the study of modulation of the ANS. The objective of the study will be to measure the effects of massage as a recuperative technique on the autonomic modulation of heart rate and cardiorespiratory parameters at different moments of application. METHODS: This is a randomized, cross-over clinical trial. Forty men aged 18 to 30 years, healthy and physically active according to the International Physical Activity Questionnaire will participate in the study. Participants will be randomized into groups, which will perform the five interventions of the study at randomized moments, one intervention per session: Intervention 1: control; Intervention 2: participants will receive the massage protocol; Intervention 3: performance of the stress protocol; Intervention 4: participants will perform the stress protocol and immediately after receive the massage; Intervention 5: participants will perform the stress protocol and 1 h after conclusion of the protocol will receive the massage. The sessions will occur with an interval of 1 week between them and, due to the technique used, blinding participants and therapists is not possible. The primary outcome measure is HRV that will be measured 2 h after the conclusion of each intervention, and secondary outcome measures, which include heart rate, respiratory rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, and individual touch perception, will be measured at specific moments in the course of each intervention. DISCUSSION: The implementation and use of this standardized protocol should provide important and reliable information regarding the use of massage in post-exercise recovery, with the identification of its effects on the ANS and the best timing and form of massage application. The data obtained in the present study will provide subsidies for the best management of application of the technique in sports clinical practice, considering periods of training and, mainly, of competitions. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, ID: NCT03094676 . Pre-results. 12 March 2018.