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0SPORT PHYSIOLOGY
Changes in regional blood flow of the lower limb during the period of early recovery after physical activity
UDC 57.087.1
Dr. Biol., Associate Professor A.V. Kabachkova1 Postgraduate student F. Syao1 Postgraduate student L. Tszyao1 Postgraduate student S.N. Kapitanov1 1National Research Tomsk State University, Tomsk
Corresponding author: [email protected]
Received by the editorial office on 22.05.2024
Abstract
Objective of the study was to study the response of regional blood flow of the lower extremities in healthy men during the period of early recovery after physical exercise when the whole body is immersed in water.
Methods and structure of the study. 20 conditionally healthy volunteers of the first mature age (all men) took part in the scientific work. In addition to gender and age criteria, the following conditions for inclusion in the observation group were identified: height 170-180 cm, body mass index 20-24 kg/m2, average level of physical activity (3,000-4,000 MET-min/ week). Exclusion criteria were chronic respiratory diseases, a history of acute illness within the last three months, smoking, regular water hardening (including winter swimming). Rheovasographic examination of the lower extremities was carried out using the Valenta hardware and software complex (Neo Company LLC, Russia).
Results and conclusions. The article presents the results of a study of the reaction of regional blood flow of the lower extremities in healthy men during the period of early recovery after physical activity when the whole body is immersed in water. It has been shown that being in comfortable conditions of an aquatic environment leads to a prolonged vascular response. At the stage of early recovery in both groups, the efficiency of the heart and vascular reactivity increase. Moreover, in the TWI group, a comfortable water environment significantly contributes to longer-lasting vasodilation. Thus, the use of complete immersion in a comfortable aquatic environment for passive recovery after intense physical activity is promising.
Keywords: rheovasography, healthy volunteers, comfortable temperature, fatigue, recovery.
Introduction. Fatigue always accompanies the training process, and insufficient recovery or an improperly organized recovery period after long and intense training can negatively affect the results of subsequent training or competitions [3, 5]. During early recovery, hydrotherapeutic methods [2], such as cold water immersion [4], are widely used. However, research examining the effectiveness of using neutral or warm water after exercise remains limited. In particular, according to our own meta-analysis (2023), it was shown that the use of water of different temperatures has similar restorative effects [6].
Objective of the study was to study the response of regional blood flow of the lower extremities in healthy men during the period of early recovery after physical exercise when the whole body is immersed in water.
Methods and structure of the study. 20 apparently healthy volunteers of the first adulthood (all men) took part in the scientific work; all participants were divided into 2 groups - CON and TWI. In addition to gender and age criteria, the following conditions for inclusion in the observation group were identified: height 170-180 cm, body mass index 20-24 kg/m2, average level of physical activity (3,000-4,000 MET-min/week). Exclusion criteria were chronic respiratory diseases, a history of acute illness within the last three months, smoking, regular water hardening (including winter swimming). Rheovasographic examination of the lower extremities was carried out using the Valenta hardware and software complex (Neo Company LLC, Russia). Registration of indicators was carried out in a state of relative rest, immediately after physi-
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cal activity and after recovery for 15 minutes. Exercise included running with a high hip lift for 20 seconds, followed by a double countermovement jump (CMJ) and a 30-second rest period between repetitions. The criterion for achieving fatigue was a decrease in jump height by more than 40% from the initial level. After this, volunteers either immersed themselves in water (TWI group) or remained in standard conditions (CON group) for 15 minutes (see figure). During the first week of the study, all volunteers were assigned to the CON group. After a week of rest, all volunteers were transferred to the TWI group. SPSS 21.0 was used for statistical data processing. Differences were considered statistically significant at p<0,05.
Results of the study and discussion. The results of rheovasography are divided into indicators of blood filling, blood inflow and outflow, as well as their ratio [1]. For further analysis and interpretation, we used the data obtained in the «right thigh» section (all volunteers had the leading leg on the right) (see table).
Blood supply indicators. In both CON and TWI groups, an increase in blood volume was observed after exercise. Relative volume pulse (Pr) increased significantly in all observation groups, indicating an increase in cardiac efficiency and vascular reactivity. In the recovery phase, the Pr value in both groups showed a tendency to decrease by 12%. The rheographic index (RI) and the maximum arterial component (A) increased significantly after exercise (p<0,05), indicating an increase in blood flow due to a local increase in temperature and vasodilation. In the CON group, after 15 minutes of passive recovery, there was a significant
The position of a person during passive recovery Note - on the left - full immersion in water (TWI), on the right - being in a room (CON)
decrease in RI and A (p<0,05). While in the TWI group, RI and A values increased by 5%, indicating that a comfortable water environment contributed to maintaining hyperemia and improving hemodynamics. After physical exercise, the amplitude-frequency index (AFI) increased in both groups, reflecting the physiological response of the heart to intense exercise. At the recovery stage, blood volume indicators in the TWI group were significantly higher than those in the CON group (p<0,05).
Blood flow indicators. After physical exercise in both groups, the value of the elastic modulus (MU) was significantly higher than the same parameter in a state of relative rest (p<0,05). This indicates that the vessels temporarily increased their stiffness, preventing them from dilating excessively, in response to increased cardiac output. After recovery in both groups, the MU value decreased significantly (p<0,05), which is associated with a weakening of the tone of the vascular wall and restoration of the natural elasticity of the vessels. However, no differences were observed between the CON and TWI groups (p<0,05). In all observed groups, the average rapid filling rate (Vb) decreased after exercise, which reflects the effect of the exercise on the efficiency of the myocardium (in particular, diastolic blood filling). In addition, the redistribution of blood during exercise reduced the volume of blood returning to the heart, which further slowed the rate of its blood filling. After sufficient rest, normal diastolic cardiac function is gradually restored. The volume of blood returning to the heart increases, which gradually leads to an increase in Vb. In the recovery phase, hydrostatic water pressure accelerates the return of blood to the heart, which is presumably the main reason for the significant increase in Vb in the TWI experimental group compared to the CON control group (p<0,05).
Indicators of blood outflow. In both groups, venous outflow (VO) indicators in the fatigue state showed a tendency to decrease, and in the recovery phase, to increase. Thus, intense loads contributed to the obstruction of blood outflow, and during the recovery period, on the contrary, easier conditions for outflow were observed.
The ratio of blood inflow and outflow. Dicrotic index (DCI) and diastolic index (DI) are important rhe-ological indicators that assess the efficiency of the heart pump and the state of vascular elasticity. In both groups, after physical exercise, the values of DCI and DSI increased, and after 15 minutes of passive rest they decreased.
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Indicators of regional blood flow at the level of the "right hip" segment
The Monitoring Group
Indicator CON TWI
Baseline Fatigue Recovery Baseline Fatigue Recovery
Pr 0,43±0,13 0,77±0,211 0,68±0,07 0,66±0,12 1,06±0,371 0,93±0,143
RI 1,15±0,18 1,55±0,331 1,25±0,212 1,19±0,31 1,54±0,271 1,62±0,213
AFP 1,18±0,41 1,41±0,59 1,51±0,29 1,42±0,31 2,00±0,791 2,00±0,363
A 114,64±17,84 154,92±33,201 125,58±20,552 118,40±31,39 154,30±26,991 161,23±21,493
MU 11,00±3,74 21,80±3,561 18,80±2,952 14,50±3,93 25,38±4,631 20,38±2,392
Vb 1,21±0,31 0,89±0,26 0,97±0,11 1,36±0,30 0,95±0,211 1,19±0,223
VO 14,52±6,78 6,32±4,88 11,78±13,67 25,30±26,89 15,15±8,19 27,40±26,68
DCI 0,27±0,23 0,39±0,15 0,14±0,072 0,27±0,16 0,32±0,25 0,30±0,20
DSI 0,53±0,39 0,96±0,79 0,65±0,45 0,57±0,31 1,90±1,63 0,36±0,132
Note - Pr is the relative volumetric pulse (in %), RI - rheographic index (in units), AFP is the amplitude-frequency index (in c-1), A is the maximum arterial component (in Ohms), MU is the modulus of elasticity (in %), Vb is the average rate of rapid filling (in Ohms/s), VO - venous outflow (in %), DCI - dicrotic index (in units), DSI - diastolic index (in units); CON - passive recovery when in a room under standard conditions, TWI - passive recovery when fully immersed in water at a comfortable temperature; Baseline - measurement results at relative rest before loading, Fatigue - measurement results immediately after loading, Recovery - measurement results after 15 minutes of passive recovery;1 - statistically significant differences (p<0.05) when comparing Baseline and Fatigue, 2 - statistically significant differences (p<0.05) when comparing Fatigue and Recovery, 3 - statistically significant differences (p<0.05) when comparing CON and TWI.
inclusions. Promising is the use of complete immersion in a comfortable aquatic environment for passive recovery after intense physical activity. The TWI group shows a prolonged vascular response compared with the CON group. At the stage of early recovery in both groups, the efficiency of the heart and vascular reactivity increase. Moreover, in the TWI group, a comfortable aquatic environment significantly promotes longer-lasting vasodilation. There is also a more pronounced rapid recovery of cardiac and vascular functions in the TWI group - a decrease in MU and an increase in Vb. The results obtained reflect the potential benefits of using a comfortable aquatic environment to passively stimulate blood circulation and accelerate the recovery of cardiac function.
The study was carried out with the support of the Development Program of Tomsk State University (Priority-2030).
References
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