Recovery with vistula tart cherries following a marathon

Area of Science:

• Sports Medicine
• Nutritional Science
• Exercise Physiology

Background:

• Long-distance running significantly elevates inflammation and muscle damage.
• Tart cherries (TC) are recognized for their potential in exercise recovery, particularly in mitigating muscle damage and inflammation.
• The Vistula cultivar of tart cherries has not been previously explored for its recovery effects.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of the Vistula tart cherry cultivar on recovery markers following marathon running.
• To assess the efficacy of tart cherry supplementation in reducing inflammation and muscle damage post-marathon.

Main Methods:

• Thirty-five recreational marathon runners were randomized to receive either freeze-dried Vistula tart cherry powder or a placebo for seven days, with the marathon occurring on day five.
• Key recovery variables including maximal voluntary contractions (MVC), counter movement jumps (CMJ), muscle soreness (DOMS), creatine kinase (CK), and high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) were measured pre- and post-marathon at 24 and 48 hours.
• Statistical analysis was performed to determine treatment and interaction effects on the measured recovery indices.

Main Results:

• Marathon running induced significant changes in all measured variables, confirming muscle damage and inflammation.
• No significant differences were observed between the tart cherry and placebo groups for MVC, CMJ, DOMS, or CK levels.
• A significant reduction in high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) was found in the tart cherry group compared to the placebo group (7.9 vs. 12.5 mg/L, p=0.031).

Conclusions:

• Marathon running leads to measurable muscle damage and inflammation.
• Vistula tart cherry supplementation did not significantly improve functional recovery or reduce muscle soreness or creatine kinase levels.
• Tart cherry supplementation effectively lowered inflammation, as indicated by reduced hs-CRP levels, suggesting a specific benefit for managing post-marathon inflammation.