Dehydration Delays Recovery of Muscular Power and Balance Following Exercise-Induced Muscle Damage

Dehydration can impair performance by reducing muscular power and balance. However, the effect of dehydration on muscular functional power and balance recovery following muscle damage remains unclear. Dehydration is common following strenuous exercise and may exacerbate muscle damage–related impairments in neuromuscular function, potentially delaying recovery of power and balance. PURPOSE: To examine whether dehydration influences skeletal muscle functional power and balance recovery following eccentric exercise-induced muscle damage in recreationally active men. METHODS: Seven recreationally active men (21±3yrs, 173.4±7.4cm, 170.5±25.9kg, lean mass 60.9±10.4kg, %fat 25.0±0.6%) completed two identical unilateral maximal eccentric knee extension exercise protocols (EKE; 10 sets × 30 reps) under a hydrated state to induce muscle damage. Following EKE, participants completed a 72-hr recovery under either euhydrated (EUHY) or dehydrated (DEHY) conditions. For DEHY, participants refrained from fluid intake for the first 24hr, followed by 1.5L/d of fluid for the subsequent 48 hr. For EUHY, participants consumed >3.7L/d of fluids. A low-moisture-content diets were replicated for both conditions. Functional power (single-leg hop distance [SJD]; cm) and dynamic balance (Y-balance test: anterior [ANT], posteromedial [PM], and posterolateral [PL] reach distances; cm) of the damaged-leg were assessed at PRE, 24h, 48h, and 72h . Both conditions were randomized and counterbalanced and were separated by ~28 days. Data were analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA (condition × time) and results are presented as mean ± SD. RESULTS: A significant (p