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Rowing and pain: does rowing lead to exercise-induced hypoalgesia?
Fabian Tomschi1, Steffen Herzig1, Thomas Hilberg1
1Department of Sports Medicine, University of Wuppertal, Wuppertal, Germany.
Summary
Maximal rowing exercise induced hypoalgesia (EIH), a significant decrease in pain sensitivity, across all body locations. Submaximal rowing and control sessions did not produce EIH effects in experienced rowers.
Area of Science:
- Exercise physiology
- Pain processing
- Sports science
Background:
- Physical activity influences pain perception through exercise-induced hypoalgesia (EIH).
- Understanding the intensity and type of exercise that elicits EIH is crucial for pain management and athletic training.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of two distinct rowing exercise protocols on EIH.
- To determine if individual rowing performance correlates with the magnitude of EIH.
Main Methods:
- A randomized controlled crossover study involving 50 experienced male rowers.
- Participants completed a maximal 350m all-out rowing session, a 30-minute submaximal rowing session, and a control session.
- Pain sensitivity was measured using pressure pain thresholds (PPT) before and after each session at multiple body landmarks.
Main Results:
- Maximal rowing exercise significantly increased PPT (reduced pain sensitivity) at all measured landmarks (e.g., left knee: +10.0 ± 12.2 N, p ≤ 0.001).
- Submaximal rowing and control sessions did not induce significant changes in PPT.
- No significant correlation was found between individual rowing performance (max watt/kg) and the observed changes in PPT.
Conclusions:
- Short, maximal-intensity rowing exercise effectively induces widespread EIH in experienced rowers.
- Submaximal intensity rowing does not elicit EIH.
- EIH in this context is not explained by rowing-specific performance levels, potentially due to a lack of performance heterogeneity in the study sample.
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