A comparison of muscle damage, soreness and performance following a simulated contact and non-contact team sport activity circuit

The aim was to compare the effect of a simulated team sport activity circuit (reflective of the activity demands of Australian football) either with or without body ‘contact’ on muscle soreness, damage, and performance when the circuit was repeated 48 h later. Eleven male, team-sport athletes completed a ‘non-contact’ (NCON) and a ‘contact’ (CON) version of the team sport activity circuit in a crossover design with at least 1 week between trials. The effect of CON and NCON on repeated 15 m sprint and vertical jump performance was assessed by completing the same version of the circuit 48 h after the initial trial. The effect on perceived soreness and blood markers of muscle damage and inflammation was also determined. Subsequent performance was affected to a greater extent by CON, with both best and mean sprint times significantly slower 48 h following CON (p < 0.05), while performance was maintained after NCON. Best and mean vertical jump performance was significantly impaired following CON (p < 0.05), while only best vertical jump was affected by NCON (p < 0.05). Perceived soreness and pressure sensitivity were elevated following both NCON and CON (p < 0.001); however, the increase in soreness was greater with CON (p = 0.012). Both CON and NCON resulted in elevated serum creatine kinase, myoglobin and lactate dehydrogenase, while c-reactive protein increased following CON but not NCON. In conclusion, Greater perceived soreness and decrements in performance of the simulated team sport activity circuit when repeated 48 h later were observed following CON.