Effect of Combined Active Recovery and Foam Rolling Enhance Lactate Clearance and Reduce Muscle Soreness Following a Simulated Running Competition (ARFR)

May 2, 2026 updated by: Waristra Tyo Nirwansyah, Surabaya State University

This study investigates the effects of combining Active Recovery (AR) and Foam Rolling (FR) on blood lactate, heart rate, and muscle soreness in competitive 400-meter sprint athletes. Twenty healthy athletes will be randomly assigned to one of two groups:

Experimental group: Active Recovery + Foam Rolling Control group: Active Recovery only All participants will perform a simulated 400-meter sprint. Following the sprint, both groups perform 5 minutes of light jogging (Active Recovery). Subsequently, participants in the experimental group will perform 10 minutes of foam rolling on the quadriceps, hamstring, and gastrocnemius muscles.

Measurements include:

Blood lactate: pre- and post-recovery Heart rate: baseline, pre-exercise, post-recovery Muscle soreness (VAS 0-10): quadriceps, hamstring, gastrocnemius at baseline, pre-exercise, post-recovery, 1 hour, and 24 hours post-exercise The study aims to determine whether adding foam rolling to active recovery improves post-exercise physiological and perceptual recovery markers. Participants will not be informed of their group assignment to reduce bias; only the investigators will know.

All procedures will take place at the Athletics Track, Surabaya State University, Indonesia.

Ethical approval has been obtained from Komite Etik Penelitian Kesehatan STIKES Guna Bangsa Yogyakarta (Ethical Approval No: 009/KEPK/II/2026).

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Background:

Recovery strategies are crucial in sprinting to restore physiological homeostasis, reduce muscle fatigue, and prevent injury. Active recovery (AR) through light jogging has been shown to facilitate lactate clearance and maintain cardiovascular stability. Foam rolling (FR) has recently gained popularity as a self-myofascial release technique, potentially enhancing recovery by improving blood flow, reducing muscle stiffness, and decreasing perceived soreness. However, evidence in competitive 400-meter sprint athletes remains limited.

Study Design:

This study is a randomized controlled trial with two parallel arms. Twenty competitive 400-meter sprint athletes will be recruited and randomized into:

Experimental group: AR + FR Control group: AR only Randomization will occur prior to the study day. Participants will remain blinded to their group allocation, ensuring unbiased outcome assessment. On the study day, participants perform a 400-meter sprint. Afterward, both groups perform 5 minutes of light jogging (AR). Then, participants in the experimental group continue with 10 minutes of foam rolling on key lower limb muscles (quadriceps, hamstring, gastrocnemius).

Outcome Measures:

Primary Outcomes:

Blood lactate (mmol/L), pre- and post-recovery Heart rate (bpm), baseline, pre-exercise, post-recovery

Secondary Outcomes:

Muscle soreness (VAS 0-10), assessed in quadriceps, hamstring, and gastrocnemius at baseline, pre-exercise, post-recovery, 1 hour, and 24 hours

Procedures:

Lactate measured via finger-prick using a lactate analyzer Heart rate recorded using Polar H-10 chest strap monitor Muscle soreness assessed using standardized VAS

Study Location:

All procedures will take place at Athletics Track, Surabaya State University, Indonesia.

Ethical Considerations:

This study has received ethical approval from Komite Etik Penelitian Kesehatan STIKES Guna Bangsa Yogyakarta (009/KEPK/II/2026). Participants will provide written informed consent prior to enrollment.

Significance:

This study will provide evidence on whether adding foam rolling to active recovery enhances physiological and perceptual recovery markers in sprint athletes, potentially informing best practices in sprint training and competition recovery protocols.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

20

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Indonesia
    • East Java
      • Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia
        • Universitas Negeri Surabaya - Athletics Track

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Male university athletes specializing in 400-meter sprint.
  • Age between 18 and 23 years.
  • Currently training regularly and free from musculoskeletal injuries.
  • Willing to provide written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • History of cardiovascular, metabolic, or musculoskeletal disorders.
  • Use of performance-enhancing drugs or supplements in the past 3 months.
  • Inability to perform maximal sprint due to injury or other medical conditions.
  • Refusal or inability to provide written informed consent.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Active Recovery + Foam Rolling
Participants perform a 400-meter sprint followed by 5 minutes of active recovery (light jogging). Subsequently, participants in this group perform 10 minutes of foam rolling focusing on quadriceps, hamstring, and gastrocnemius muscles. Blood lactate is measured pre- and post-recovery. Heart rate is recorded at baseline, pre-exercise, and post-recovery using a chest strap monitor. Muscle soreness is assessed using a visual analog scale (0-10) at baseline, pre-exercise, post-recovery, 1 hour, and 24 hours post-exercise.
Behavioral: Active Recovery + Foam Rolling
Participants perform a 400-meter sprint followed by 5 minutes of active recovery (light jogging). Subsequently, participants perform 10 minutes of foam rolling on quadriceps, hamstring, and gastrocnemius muscles. Blood lactate is measured pre- and post-recovery. Heart rate is recorded at baseline, pre-exercise, and post-recovery using a chest strap monitor. Muscle soreness is assessed using a visual analog scale (0-10) at baseline, pre-exercise, post-recovery, 1 hour, and 24 hours post-exercise.
Active Comparator: Active Recovery Only
Participants perform a 400-meter sprint followed by 5 minutes of active recovery (light jogging) only. Blood lactate is measured pre- and post-recovery. Heart rate is recorded at baseline, pre-exercise, and post-recovery using a chest strap monitor. Muscle soreness is assessed using a visual analog scale (0-10) at baseline, pre-exercise, post-recovery, 1 hour, and 24 hours post-exercise.
Behavioral: Active Recovery Only
Participants perform a 400-meter sprint followed by 5 minutes of active recovery (light jogging) only. Blood lactate is measured pre- and post-recovery. Heart rate is recorded at baseline, pre-exercise, and post-recovery using a chest strap monitor. Muscle soreness is assessed using a visual analog scale (0-10) at baseline, pre-exercise, post-recovery, 1 hour, and 24 hours post-exercise.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Blood Lactate Concentration
Time Frame: Pre-recovery and post-recovery (15 minutes)
Blood lactate will be measured using a finger-prick lactate analyzer immediately before and after the recovery protocol following a 400-meter sprint.
Pre-recovery and post-recovery (15 minutes)
Heart Rate
Time Frame: Baseline, pre-exercise, and post-recovery (15 minutes after completion of recovery protocol)
Heart rate will be recorded using a Polar H-10 chest strap monitor at baseline, immediately before the sprint, and immediately after the recovery protocol.
Baseline, pre-exercise, and post-recovery (15 minutes after completion of recovery protocol)
Muscle Soreness VAS (Quadriceps, Hamstring, Gastrocnemius)
Time Frame: Baseline, pre-exercise, post-recovery (15 minutes after completion of recovery protocol), 1 hour, 24 hours post-exercise
Muscle soreness will be assessed using a visual analog scale (0-10) for quadriceps, hamstring, and gastrocnemius muscles at baseline, pre-exercise, post-recovery, 1 hour, and 24 hours post-exercise.
Baseline, pre-exercise, post-recovery (15 minutes after completion of recovery protocol), 1 hour, 24 hours post-exercise

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Surabaya State University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

February 18, 2026

Primary Completion (Actual)

February 19, 2026

Study Completion (Actual)

February 19, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 17, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 24, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

February 27, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

May 7, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 2, 2026

Last Verified

May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • UNESA-ARFR-2026

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Individual participant data will not be shared due to the small sample size (n=20) and the sensitive nature of physiological and subjective measures, including blood lactate, heart rate, and muscle soreness scores. Data confidentiality and participant privacy will be strictly maintained

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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