Top

Published in:

01-06-2022 | Original Article

Acute arm and leg muscle glycogen and metabolite responses to small-sided football games in healthy young men

Authors: Jeppe Panduro, Jeppe F. Vigh-Larsen, Georgios Ermidis, Susana Póvoas, Jakob Friis Schmidt, Karen Søgaard, Peter Krustrup, Magni Mohr, Morten Bredsgaard Randers

Published in: European Journal of Applied Physiology | Issue 8/2022

Abstract

Purpose

Studies have indicated upper body involvement during football, provoking long-term muscular adaptations. This study aimed at examining the acute metabolic response in upper and lower body skeletal muscle to football training organized as small-sided games (SSG).

Methods

Ten healthy male recreational football players [age 24 ± 1 (± SD) yrs; height 183 ± 4 cm; body mass 83.1 ± 9.7 kg; body fat 15.5 ± 5.4%] completed 1-h 5v5 SSG (4 × 12 min interspersed with 4-min recovery periods). Muscle biopsies were obtained from m. vastus lateralis (VL) and m. deltoideus (DE) pre- and post-SSG for muscle glycogen and metabolite analyses. Blood lactate samples were obtained at rest, middle and end of the SSG.

Results

Muscle glycogen in VL decreased (P < 0.01) by 21% and tended (P = 0.08) to decrease in DE by 13%. Muscle lactate increased in VL (117%; P < 0.001) and DE (81%; P < 0.001) during the game, while blood lactate rose threefold. Muscle ATP and PCr were unaltered, but intermuscular differences were detected for ATP at both time points (P < 0.001) and for PCr at pre-SSG (P < 0.05) with VL demonstrating higher values than DE, while muscle creatine rose in VL (P < 0.001) by 41% and by 22% in DE (P = 0.02). Baseline citrate synthase maximal activity was higher (P < 0.05) in VL compared to DE, whereas baseline muscle lactate concentration was higher (P < 0.05) in DE than VL.

Conclusion

The upper body may be extensively involved during football play, but besides a rise in muscle lactate in the deltoideus muscle similar to the leg muscles, the present study did not demonstrate acute metabolic changes of an order that may explain the previously reported training effect of football play in the upper extremities.

Ahlborg G, Felig P (1982) Lactate and glucose exchange across the forearm, legs, and splanchnic bed during and after prolonged leg exercise. J Clin Invest 69(1):45–54. https://doi.org/10.1172/jci110440CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Ahlborg G, Jensen-Urstad M (1991) Metabolism in exercising arm vs. leg muscle. Clin Physiol 11(5):459–468. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-097x.1991.tb00818.xCrossRefPubMed

Andersen LL, Blangsted AK, Nielsen PK, Hansen L, Vedsted P, Sjøgaard G, Søgaard K (2010) Effect of cycling on oxygenation of relaxed neck/shoulder muscles in women with and without chronic pain. Eur J Appl Physiol 110(2):389–394. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-010-1517-4CrossRefPubMed

Bangsbo J (1994) Energy demands in competitive soccer. J Sports Sci 12 Spec No:S5-12CrossRef

Bangsbo J, Madsen K, Kiens B, Richter EA (1996) Effect of muscle acidity on muscle metabolism and fatigue during intense exercise in man. J Physiol 495(Pt 2):587–596. https://doi.org/10.1113/jphysiol.1996.sp021618CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Bates D, Mächler M, Bolker B, Walker S (2015) Fitting linear mixed-effects models using lme4. J Stat Softw 67(1):1–48. https://doi.org/10.18637/jss.v067.i01CrossRef

Bendiksen M, Bischoff R, Randers MB, Mohr M, Rollo I, Suetta C, Bangsbo J, Krustrup P (2012) The Copenhagen Soccer Test: physiological response and fatigue development. Med Sci Sports Exerc 44(8):1595–1603. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0b013e31824cc23bCrossRefPubMed

Bergstrom J (1962) Muscle electrolytes in man determined by neutron activation analysis on needle biopsy specimens. Scand J Clin Lab Invest (England) 14(Suppl 68)

Bizzini M, Dvorak J (2015) FIFA 11+: an effective programme to prevent football injuries in various player groups worldwide—a narrative review. Br J Sports Med 49(9):577–579. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2015-094765CrossRefPubMed

Chudalla R, Baerwalde S, Schneider G, Maassen N (2006) Local and systemic effects on blood lactate concentration during exercise with small and large muscle groups. Pflugers Arch 452(6):690–697. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00424-006-0082-5CrossRefPubMed

Dellal A, Hill-Haas S, Lago-Penas C, Chamari K (2011) Small-sided games in Soccer: amateur vs. professional players’ physiological responses, physical, and technical activities. J Strength Cond Res 25(9):2371–2381. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181fb4296CrossRefPubMed

Fransson D, Nielsen TS, Olsson K, Christensson T, Bradley PS, Fatouros IG, Krustrup P, Nordsborg NB, Mohr M (2018a) Skeletal muscle and performance adaptations to high-intensity training in elite male soccer players: speed endurance runs versus small-sided game training. Eur J Appl Physiol 118(1):111–121. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-017-3751-5CrossRefPubMed

Fransson D, Vigh-Larsen JF, Fatouros IG, Krustrup P, Mohr M (2018b) Fatigue responses in various muscle groups in well-trained competitive male players after a simulated soccer game. J Hum Kinet 61:85–97. https://doi.org/10.1515/hukin-2017-0129CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Helge JW (2010) Arm and leg substrate utilization and muscle adaptation after prolonged low-intensity training. Acta Physiol (oxf) 199(4):519–528. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-1716.2010.02123.xCrossRef

Helge JW, Damsgaard R, Overgaard K, Andersen JL, Donsmark M, Dyrskog SE, Hermansen K, Saltin B, Daugaard JR (2008) Low-intensity training dissociates metabolic from aerobic fitness. Scand J Med Sci Sports 18(1):86–94. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0838.2006.00604.xCrossRefPubMed

Hopkins W, Marshall S, Batterham A, Hanin J (2009) Progressive statistics for studies in sports medicine and exercise science. Med Sci Sports Exerc 41(1):3

Juel C, Klarskov C, Nielsen JJ, Krustrup P, Mohr M, Bangsbo J (2004) Effect of high-intensity intermittent training on lactate and H+ release from human skeletal muscle. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 286(2):E245-251. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpendo.00303.2003CrossRefPubMed

Kiilerich K, Birk JB, Damsgaard R, Wojtaszewski JF, Pilegaard H (2008) Regulation of PDH in human arm and leg muscles at rest and during intense exercise. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 294(1):E36-42. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpendo.00352.2007CrossRefPubMed

Krustrup P, Krustrup BR (2018) Football is medicine: it is time for patients to play! Br J Sports Med 52(22):1412–1414. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2018-099377CrossRefPubMed

Krustrup P, Mohr M, Ellingsgaard H, Bangsbo J (2005) Physical demands during an elite female soccer game: importance of training status. Med Sci Sports Exerc 37(7):1242–1248. https://doi.org/10.1249/01.mss.0000170062.73981.94CrossRefPubMed

Krustrup P, Mohr M, Steensberg A, Bencke J, Kjaer M, Bangsbo J (2006) Muscle and blood metabolites during a soccer game: implications for sprint performance. Med Sci Sports Exerc 38(6):1165–1174. https://doi.org/10.1249/01.mss.0000222845.89262.cdCrossRefPubMed

Krustrup P, Christensen JF, Randers MB, Pedersen H, Sundstrup E, Jakobsen MD, Krustrup BR, Nielsen JJ, Suetta C, Nybo L, Bangsbo J (2010) Muscle adaptations and performance enhancements of soccer training for untrained men. Eur J Appl Physiol 108(6):1247–1258. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-009-1319-8CrossRefPubMed

Krustrup P, Williams CA, Mohr M, Hansen PR, Helge EW, Elbe AM, de Sousa M, Dvorak J, Junge A, Hammami A, Holtermann A, Larsen MN, Kirkendall D, Schmidt JF, Andersen TR, Buono P, Rørth M, Parnell D, Ottesen L, Bennike S, Nielsen JJ, Mendham AE, Zar A, Uth J, Hornstrup T, Brasso K, Nybo L, Krustrup BR, Meyer T, Aagaard P, Andersen JL, Hubball H, Reddy PA, Ryom K, Lobelo F, Barene S, Helge JW, Fatouros IG, Nassis GP, Xu JC, Pettersen SA, Calbet JA, Seabra A, Rebelo AN, Figueiredo P, Póvoas S, Castagna C, Milanovic Z, Bangsbo J, Randers MB, Brito J (2018) The “Football is Medicine” platform-scientific evidence, large-scale implementation of evidence-based concepts and future perspectives. Scand J Med Sci Sports 28(Suppl 1):3–7. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.13220CrossRefPubMed

Krustrup P, Mohr M, Nybo L, Draganidis D, Randers MB, Ermidis G, Ørntoft C, Røddik L, Batsilas D, Poulios A, Ørtenblad N, Loules G, Deli CK, Batrakoulis A, Nielsen JL, Jamurtas AZ, Fatouros IG (2021) Muscle metabolism and impaired sprint performance in an elite women’s football game. Scand J Med Sci Sports. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.13970CrossRefPubMed

Lenth RV (2021) emmeans: estimated Marginal Means, aka Least-Squares Means. https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=emmeans

Lindinger MI, Heigenhauser GJ, McKelvie RS, Jones NL (1990) Role of nonworking muscle on blood metabolites and ions with intense intermittent exercise. Am J Physiol 258(6 Pt 2):R1486-1494. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpregu.1990.258.6.R1486CrossRefPubMed

Lowry OH, Passonneau JV (1972) A flexible system of enzymatic analysis. Academic Press, New York

Mannion AF, Jakeman PM, Willan PL (1993) Determination of human skeletal muscle buffer value by homogenate technique: methods of measurement. J Appl Physiol 75(3):1412–1418

Mohr M, Nielsen TS, Weihe P, Thomsen JA, Aquino G, Krustrup P, Nordsborg NB (2017) Muscle ion transporters and antioxidative proteins have different adaptive potential in arm than in leg skeletal muscle with exercise training. Physiol Rep. https://doi.org/10.14814/phy2.13470CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Nordsborg NB, Connolly L, Weihe P, Iuliano E, Krustrup P, Saltin B, Mohr M (2015) Oxidative capacity and glycogen content increase more in arm than leg muscle in sedentary women after intense training. J Appl Physiol (1985) 119(2):116–123. https://doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.00101.2015CrossRef

Nybo L, Girard O, Mohr M, Knez W, Voss S, Racinais S (2013) Markers of muscle damage and performance recovery after exercise in the heat. Med Sci Sports Exerc 45(5):860–868. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0b013e31827ded04CrossRefPubMed

Ørtenblad N, Nielsen J, Saltin B, Holmberg HC (2011) Role of glycogen availability in sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ kinetics in human skeletal muscle. J Physiol 589(Pt 3):711–725. https://doi.org/10.1113/jphysiol.2010.195982CrossRefPubMed

Ørtenblad N, Nielsen J, Boushel R, Soderlund K, Saltin B, Holmberg HC (2018) The muscle fiber profiles, mitochondrial content, and enzyme activities of the exceptionally well-trained arm and leg muscles of elite cross-country skiers. Front Physiol 9:1031. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2018.01031CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Passonneau JV, Lowry OH (1993) Enzymatic analysis: a practical guide. The Humana Press Inc, TotowaCrossRef

Pedersen MT, Randers MB, Skotte JH, Krustrup P (2009) Recreational soccer can improve the reflex response to sudden trunk loading among untrained women. J Strength Cond Res 23(9):2621–2626. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181c701b6CrossRefPubMed

Putman CT, Matsos MP, Hultman E, Jones NL, Heigenhauser GJ (1999) Pyruvate dehydrogenase activation in inactive muscle during and after maximal exercise in men. Am J Physiol 276(3):E483-488. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpendo.1999.276.3.E483CrossRefPubMed

R Core Team (2020) R: a language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. https://www.R-project.org/

Randers MB, Mujika I, Hewitt A, Santisteban J, Bischoff R, Solano R, Zubillaga A, Peltola E, Krustrup P, Mohr M (2010a) Application of four different football match analysis systems: a comparative study. J Sports Sci 28(2):171–182CrossRef

Randers MB, Nielsen JJ, Krustrup BR, Sundstrup E, Jakobsen MD, Nybo L, Dvorak J, Bangsbo J, Krustrup P (2010b) Positive performance and health effects of a football training program over 12 weeks can be maintained over a 1-year period with reduced training frequency. Scand J Med Sci Sports 20(Suppl 1):80–89. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0838.2010.01091.xCrossRefPubMed

Randers MB, Nielsen JJ, Bangsbo J, Krustrup P (2014) Physiological response and activity profile in recreational small-sided football: no effect of the number of players. Scand J Med Sci Sports 24(Suppl 1):130–137. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.12232CrossRefPubMed

Randers MB, Ørntoft C, Hagman M, Nielsen JJ, Krustrup P (2018) Movement pattern and physiological response in recreational small-sided football - effect of number of players with a fixed pitch size. J Sports Sci 36(13):1549–1556. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2017.1402552CrossRefPubMed

Varley MC, Aughey RJ (2013) Acceleration profiles in elite Australian soccer. Int J Sports Med 34(1):34–39. https://doi.org/10.1055/s-0032-1316315CrossRefPubMed

Vigh-Larsen JF, Ermidis G, Rago V, Randers MB, Fransson D, Nielsen JL, Gliemann L, Piil JF, Morris NB, De Paoli FV, Overgaard K, Andersen TB, Nybo L, Krustrup P, Mohr M (2020) Muscle metabolism and fatigue during simulated ice hockey match-play in elite players. Med Sci Sports Exerc 52(10):2162–2171. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0000000000002370CrossRefPubMed

Title: Acute arm and leg muscle glycogen and metabolite responses to small-sided football games in healthy young men
Authors: Jeppe Panduro
Jeppe F. Vigh-Larsen
Georgios Ermidis
Susana Póvoas
Jakob Friis Schmidt
Karen Søgaard
Peter Krustrup
Magni Mohr
Morten Bredsgaard Randers
Publication date: 01-06-2022
Publisher: Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Published in: European Journal of Applied Physiology / Issue 8/2022
Print ISSN: 1439-6319
Electronic ISSN: 1439-6327
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-022-04970-y

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Acute arm and leg muscle glycogen and metabolite responses to small-sided football games in healthy young men

Abstract

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 8/2022

Tendon length estimates are influenced by tracking location

The effectiveness of bench step exercise for ameliorating acute mental stress-induced arterial stiffening

Corticospinal and peripheral responses to heat-induced hypo-hydration: potential physiological mechanisms and implications for neuromuscular function

Genetics and sports performance: the present and future in the identification of talent for sports based on DNA testing

Influence of cardiac output response to the onset of exercise on cerebral blood flow

A century of exercise physiology: key concepts in regulation of glycogen metabolism in skeletal muscle