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Sore after a workout? Check
your Free Radicals!
During normal metabolism, your body
produces chemicals called free radicals that cause aging,
degenerative diseases and breakdown of the immune system. Free
radicals can be thought of as biological rust that attacks vital
cell membranes and genes. Muscle soreness that your feel after
exercise is caused by muscle damage and inflammation - part of
which may reflect free radical production and tissue breakdown.
University of North Carolina researchers examined the effects of
intense eccentric exercise (designed to cause soreness) on
markers of free radical damage. They found that a measure of
oxidative stress - protein carbonyls - was elevated during the
first 48 hours after exercise. The results suggest the
possibility that blocking free radicals with antioxidants, such
as vitamin E and C, may reduce the symptoms of post-exercise
muscle soreness.
Thus, vitamins can reduce your
soreness and replenish your muscles faster for your next
workout!
(Med. Sci. Sports Exerc., 34:
443-448, 2002)
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