Effects of specific collagen peptide supplementation combined with resistance training on Achilles tendon properties.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of specific collagen peptides (SCP) combined with resistance training (RT) on changes in tendinous and muscular properties. In a randomized, placebo-controlled study, 40 healthy male volunteers (age: 26.3 ± 4.0 years) completed a 14 weeks high-load resistance training program. One group received a daily dosage of 5g SCP while the other group received 5g of a placebo (PLA) supplement. Changes in Achilles tendon cross-sectional area (CSA), tendon stiffness, muscular strength, and thickness of the plantar flexors were measured. The SCP supplementation led to a significantly (p = 0.002) greater increase in tendon CSA (+11.0%) compared with the PLA group (+4.7%). Moreover, the statistical analysis revealed a significantly (p = 0.014) greater increase in muscle thickness in the SCP group (+7.3%) compared with the PLA group (+2.7%). Finally, tendon stiffness and muscle strength increased in both groups, with no statistical difference between the groups. In conclusion, the current study shows that the supplementation of specific collagen peptides combined with RT is associated with a greater hypertrophy in tendinous and muscular structures than RT alone in young physically active men. These effects might play a role in reducing tendon stress (i.e., deposition of collagen in load-bearing structures) during daily activities.

Development of a modified cross-over hop test to reduce measurement errors in return-to-competition testing.

CONTEXT: Hop tests play an important role in the rehabilitation process after injuries. A comparison of the jumping distances of both extremities allows for an evaluation of the injured limb. In the conventional cross-over hop test for distance, the jump width (medial vs. lateral) that the athlete has to cross during the jump is not standardised and therefore highly variable. This affects the absolute jump length in each jump series. HYPOTHESIS: Modifying the test may reduce the jump length variance between test series of an athlete as well as the test-dependent variations in the cross-over hop for distance. METHODS: N = 47 athletes from the German and French national Judo youth teams were included in the study (age: 15.3 years ±â€Š13-17). A modified version of the cross-over hop for distance was developed with a cross-over width of 50 cm and a fixed landing zone of 10 cm. The jump lengths of the conventional test and the modified test were documented. The change in jump length variations of the two sexes were compared. RESULTS: The mean value of the coefficient of variation decreased significantly from 4.09 % to 2.83 % (p < 0.01) due to the test modification. This resulted in an absolute improvement in accuracy of 1.26 % and a relative improvement of 30.8 %. A comparison of the limb symmetry index between the conventional and the modified cross-over hop for distance revealed no significant differences. CONCLUSION: The modified cross-over hop for distance showed a significantly lower variation in jump lengths compared with the conventional cross-over hop for distance. As a result, more accurate statements can be made regarding the patient's return-to-competition progress.

Effects of Blood Flow Restriction Training with Protein Supplementation on Muscle Mass And Strength in Older Men.

Blood flow restriction (BFR) training has been shown to induce favorable changes in muscle mass and strength with a considerably low training load (20 - 30% 1RM). However, it has never been evaluated if an additional post-exercise protein supplementation enhances the effects of this training regimen. Thirty healthy older men (60.1 ± 7.6 years) were enrolled in the 8-week intervention and randomly allocated to one of the following groups: low-load BFR training with protein (collagen hydrolysate) supplementation (BFR-CH), low-load BFR training with placebo (BFR-PLA), or a control group without training, but with protein supplementation (CON). Muscle cross-sectional area (CSA), muscle strength, circulating reactive oxygen species and IGF-1 were measured before and after the intervention. Muscle CSA increased in both BFR-CH and BFR-PLA groups by 6.7 ± 3.2 % (p < 0.001) and 5.7 ± 2.7 % (p < 0.001) respectively. No significant changes were observed in the CON group (1.1 ± 1.7 %, p = 0.124). Evaluation of isometric strength (p = 0.247), insulin-like growth factor 1 (p = 0.705) and the production of reactive oxygen species (pt1 = 0.229; pt2 = 0.741) revealed no significant interaction effect but a significant long-term time effect (p < 0.001). Our results demonstrate that BFR training is an effective alternative for increasing muscle CSA in older men. Although there was a trend towards greater muscle mass adaptations in the BFR-CH group, these findings showed no statistical significance. Further research with larger sample sizes is needed to confirm these results.

Specific Collagen Peptides in Combination with Resistance Training Improve Body Composition and Regional Muscle Strength in Premenopausal Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

The aim was to investigate the effects of resistance exercise combined with supplementation of specific collagen peptides (SCP) on body composition and muscle strength in premenopausal women. In a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial 77 premenopausal women completed a 12-week resistance training (3 day/week) and ingested 15 g of SCP or placebo on a daily basis. Changes in body composition were determined by bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) and muscular strength by isometric strength testing. The treatment group (TG) significantly increased (p < 0.001) their percentage of fat-free mass. Although the control group (CG) also showed a significant (p < 0.01) gain in fat-free mass from pre- to post-training, the increase in the TG was significantly higher in an RMANOVA analysis (p < 0.05). Regarding the change in percentage body fat, a significant decline was observed in both TG (p < 0.001) and CG (p < 0.01), with a significantly higher reduction in the TG (p < 0.05). Subjects receiving 15 g of collagen peptides daily also showed a significantly higher gain in hand-grip strength compared to those performing resistance training only (p < 0.05). In both groups, the gain in leg strength (TG = p < 0.001; CG = p < 0.01) was significant after 12 weeks with a more pronounced effect in the treatment group. In conclusion, resistance training in combination with supplementation of SCP induced a significantly higher increase in fat-free mass and hand-grip strength than resistance training and placebo supplementation. In addition, there was a significantly higher loss in fat mass and a more pronounced increase in leg strength in the treatment group compared to the control group.

Oxidative stress or redox signalling - new insights into the effects of a proprietary multifunctional botanical dietary supplement.

Recent interest has focused on maintenance of healthy levels of redox signalling and the related oxidants; these parameters are crucial for providing us with concrete nutritional targets that may help us to better understand and maintain "optimal health". Following the above hypothesis, we performed a pilot double-blind, crossover, placebo-controlled, single dose study to measure the dose-dependent effects of a proprietary plant-based dietary supplement labelled here as S7 (SPECTRA7), related to how it affected the cellular metabolic index (CMI) in healthy human participants (n = 8). We demonstrated using the electron spin resonance/electron paramagnetic resonance spectrometer NOXYSCAN that the administration S7 resulted in statistically significant, long-term, dose-dependent inhibition of mitochondrial and cellular reactive oxygen species generation by as much as 9.2 or 17.7% as well as 12.0 or 14.8% inhibition in extracellular nicotinamide-dinucleotide-phosphate oxidase system-dependent generation of O2•-, and 9.5 or 44.5% inhibition of extracellular H2O2 formation. This was reflected with dose-dependent 13.4 or 17.6% inhibition of tumour necrosis factor alpha induced cellular inflammatory resistance and also 1.7 or 2.3-times increases of bioavailable NO concentration. In this pilot study, we demonstrated the ability of a natural supplement to affect cellular redox signalling, which is considered by many researchers as oxidative stress. The design and activity of this proprietary plant-based material, in combination with the newly developed "CMI" test, demonstrates the potential of using dietary supplements to modulate redox signalling. This opens the door to future research into the use of S7 for modulation of inflammatory markers, for sports endurance or recovery applications.