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Acute Changes in Gastrocnemius Muscle Stiffness

30. juli 2026 opdateret af: Monira Aldhahi, Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University

Acute Changes in Gastrocnemius Muscle Stiffness Following Different Work-Rest Calf-Raise Protocols and Percussive Therapy: A Randomized Crossover Experimental Study

This study evaluated how different exercise and rest schedules during calf-raise exercise affected the stiffness of the calf muscle in trained volleyball athletes. It also examined how muscle stiffness changed during a five-minute recovery period in which percussive therapy was applied.

Thirty volleyball athletes, including 15 women and 15 men, completed three exercise sessions in a randomized order. During each session, participants performed repeated calf raises for a total period of five minutes using one of three work-to-rest schedules: 30 seconds of exercise followed by 30 seconds of rest, 15 seconds of exercise followed by 45 seconds of rest, or 45 seconds of exercise followed by 15 seconds of rest.

The stiffness of the medial gastrocnemius, one of the main calf muscles, was measured using shear-wave elastography. Measurements were taken before exercise, immediately after exercise, and after the five-minute percussive therapy recovery period.

Studieoversigt

Status

Afsluttet

Betingelser

Intervention / Behandling

Detaljeret beskrivelse

This randomized, three-period crossover study examined the acute effects of different work-to-rest configurations during a standardized bilateral calf-raise exercise on medial gastrocnemius stiffness in trained volleyball athletes.

Thirty participants, comprising 15 women and 15 men, completed three experimental sessions in a computer-generated randomized order. Sessions were separated by at least 48 hours and were conducted at approximately the same time of day for each participant to reduce the effects of fatigue, carryover, and daily variation. Before data collection, participants completed a familiarization session.

Each experimental session lasted five minutes and included one of the following work-to-rest configurations:

30 seconds of calf raises followed by 30 seconds of rest; 15 seconds of calf raises followed by 45 seconds of rest; or 45 seconds of calf raises followed by 15 seconds of rest.

The exercise cadence was standardized at one repetition per second using a metronome. Participants performed the calf raises barefoot, with their feet approximately shoulder-width apart and their hands placed on their hips. The total session duration was the same for all conditions, while the amount and distribution of exercise and rest differed between protocols.

Medial gastrocnemius stiffness was assessed bilaterally using shear-wave elastography. Measurements were obtained before exercise, immediately after completion of the calf-raise protocol, and after a standardized five-minute recovery period involving percussive therapy. Three elastography acquisitions were recorded for each leg at each assessment and were averaged for analysis.

Percussive therapy was applied to both medial gastrocnemius muscles using a Theragun PRO device with a spherical attachment at approximately 1,750 percussions per minute. Each leg received two 60-second applications separated by 30 seconds of rest. The same experienced researcher administered the intervention and performed the measurements during all sessions.

The primary analysis evaluated changes in shear-wave velocity across the three measurement times and compared those changes among the three exercise protocols. Limb side and participant sex were also examined as exploratory factors.

The primary hypothesis was that the protocol containing 45 seconds of exercise and 15 seconds of rest would produce the greatest immediate increase in gastrocnemius stiffness because it had the highest work density. A secondary objective was to examine whether stiffness decreased toward baseline during the subsequent percussive therapy recovery period.

No sham percussive therapy or passive recovery condition was included. Therefore, changes between the immediate post-exercise and final assessments were interpreted as recovery occurring during the percussive therapy period and not as definitive evidence of an isolated treatment effect

Undersøgelsestype

Interventionel

Tilmelding (Faktiske)

30

Fase

  • Ikke anvendelig

Kontakter og lokationer

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Studiesteder

Deltagelseskriterier

Forskere leder efter personer, der passer til en bestemt beskrivelse, kaldet berettigelseskriterier. Nogle eksempler på disse kriterier er en persons generelle helbredstilstand eller tidligere behandlinger.

Berettigelseskriterier

Aldre berettiget til at studere

  • Voksen

Tager imod sunde frivillige

Ja

Beskrivelse

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Male or female volleyball athlete aged 18 to 30 years.
  • Competing at university or club level.
  • At least 3 years of structured volleyball training experience.
  • Participating in volleyball training at least 3 times per week.
  • Body mass index between 18.5 and 27.0 kg/m².
  • No lower-limb musculoskeletal injury during the previous 6 months.
  • No known neuromuscular or systemic disorder.
  • No use of anti-inflammatory, analgesic, or muscle-relaxant medication during the week before testing.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Failure to attend or complete any of the three experimental sessions.
  • Performance of vigorous exercise within 24 hours before a testing session.
  • Occurrence of an adverse event that prevented adherence to or completion of the study protocol.

Studieplan

Dette afsnit indeholder detaljer om studieplanen, herunder hvordan undersøgelsen er designet, og hvad undersøgelsen måler.

Hvordan er undersøgelsen tilrettelagt?

Design detaljer

  • Primært formål: Grundvidenskab
  • Tildeling: Randomiseret
  • Interventionel model: Crossover opgave
  • Maskning: Enkelt

Våben og indgreb

Deltagergruppe / Arm
Intervention / Behandling
Eksperimentel: 30-Second Work / 30-Second Rest Protocol
Participants performed bilateral calf raises for 30 seconds followed by 30 seconds of rest, repeated over a total protocol duration of 5 minutes. Calf raises were performed at one repetition per second. Gastrocnemius shear-wave elastography measurements were obtained before exercise, immediately after exercise, and after the standardized 5-minute percussive therapy recovery period.
Participants performed bilateral standing calf raises for 30 seconds, followed by 30 seconds of rest. The work-rest cycle was repeated over a total protocol duration of 5 minutes. Calf raises were performed barefoot at a standardized cadence of one repetition per second using a metronome, with the feet shoulder-width apart and the hands positioned on the hips.
Eksperimentel: 15-Second Work / 45-Second Rest Protocol
Participants performed bilateral calf raises for 15 seconds followed by 45 seconds of rest, repeated over a total protocol duration of 5 minutes. Calf raises were performed at one repetition per second. Gastrocnemius shear-wave elastography measurements were obtained before exercise, immediately after exercise, and after the standardized 5-minute percussive therapy recovery period.
Participants performed bilateral standing calf raises for 15 seconds, followed by 45 seconds of rest. The work-rest cycle was repeated over a total protocol duration of 5 minutes. Calf raises were performed barefoot at a standardized cadence of one repetition per second using a metronome, with the feet shoulder-width apart and the hands positioned on the hips.
Eksperimentel: 45-Second Work / 15-Second Rest Protocol
Participants performed bilateral calf raises for 45 seconds followed by 15 seconds of rest, repeated over a total protocol duration of 5 minutes. Calf raises were performed at one repetition per second. Gastrocnemius shear-wave elastography measurements were obtained before exercise, immediately after exercise, and after the standardized 5-minute percussive therapy recovery period.
Participants performed bilateral standing calf raises for 45 seconds, followed by 15 seconds of rest. The work-rest cycle was repeated over a total protocol duration of 5 minutes. Calf raises were performed barefoot at a standardized cadence of one repetition per second using a metronome, with the feet shoulder-width apart and the hands positioned on the hips.

Hvad måler undersøgelsen?

Primære resultatmål

Resultatmål
Foranstaltningsbeskrivelse
Tidsramme
Mean Change in Medial Gastrocnemius Shear-Wave Velocity
Tidsramme: Baseline, immediately after each 5-minute calf-raise protocol, and after the subsequent 5-minute percussive therapy recovery period, during each of 3 sessions separated by at least 48 hours.
Medial gastrocnemius stiffness was assessed bilaterally using shear-wave elastography and reported as shear-wave velocity in meters per second (m/s), with higher values indicating greater stiffness. Three acquisitions were obtained for each leg at each time point and averaged. Mean changes were evaluated within each work-to-rest protocol from baseline to immediately after exercise, from immediately after exercise to after the percussive therapy recovery period, and from baseline to after recovery.
Baseline, immediately after each 5-minute calf-raise protocol, and after the subsequent 5-minute percussive therapy recovery period, during each of 3 sessions separated by at least 48 hours.

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Datoer for undersøgelser

Disse datoer sporer fremskridtene for indsendelser af undersøgelsesrekord og resumeresultater til ClinicalTrials.gov. Studieregistreringer og rapporterede resultater gennemgås af National Library of Medicine (NLM) for at sikre, at de opfylder specifikke kvalitetskontrolstandarder, før de offentliggøres på den offentlige hjemmeside.

Studer store datoer

Studiestart (Faktiske)

24. juni 2025

Primær færdiggørelse (Faktiske)

24. februar 2026

Studieafslutning (Faktiske)

24. marts 2026

Datoer for studieregistrering

Først indsendt

30. juli 2026

Først indsendt, der opfyldte QC-kriterier

30. juli 2026

Først opslået (Faktiske)

4. august 2026

Opdateringer af undersøgelsesjournaler

Sidste opdatering sendt (Faktiske)

4. august 2026

Sidste opdatering indsendt, der opfyldte kvalitetskontrolkriterier

30. juli 2026

Sidst verificeret

1. juli 2026

Mere information

Begreber relateret til denne undersøgelse

Andre undersøgelses-id-numre

  • PNU-14

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