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Purpose: Delayed structural and functional recovery after a 20 km graded running race was analyzed with respect to the sex effect. Method s : Thirteen female and 14 male recreational runners completed the race and three test sessions: one before (PRE) and two after, once on Day 1 or 2 (D1‐2) and then on Day 3 or 4 (D3‐4). Muscle damage was assessed indirectly using ultrasonography to quantify changes in cross‐sectional area (CSA) of 10 lower‐limb muscles. Delayed onset of muscle soreness (DOMS) was assessed for three muscle groups. Functional recovery was quantified by kinetic analysis of a squat jump (SJ) and a drop jump (DJ) test performed on a sledge ergometer. Linear mixed models were used to assess control group reproducibility and recovery patterns according to sex. Results: Regardless of sex, DOMS peaked at D1‐2 for all muscle groups and resolved at D3‐4. CSA was increased in each muscle group until D3‐4, especially in the semimembranosus muscle. A specific increase was found in the short head of the biceps femoris in women. Regardless of sex, SJ and DJ performances declined up to D3‐4. Depending on the muscle, positive and/or negative correlations were found between structural and functional changes. Some of these were sex‐specific. Conclusion: Structural and functional recovery was incomplete in both sexes up to D3‐4, although DOMS had disappeared. More emphasis should be placed on hamstring muscle recovery. Highlighting the intermuscular compensations that can occur during multi‐joint testing tasks, the structural‐functional relationships were either positive or negative, muscle‐ and sex‐dependent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the sex influence on the acute and delayed fatigue effects of a 20 km graded running race. Eighteen recreational runners, 10 women and 8 men, completed the race. The testing protocol included five sessions: a week before the race (PRE), 35 ± 15 min after (POST), 2 h, 2 and 4 days (2D and 4D) later. Each session included uni- and bilateral maximal isometric voluntary contractions of the knee extensors (MVC), a squat jump (SJ), and a drop jump (DJ). Acute and delayed muscle soreness (DOMS) were evaluated for the quadriceps, hamstring and triceps surae muscle groups. The 2D and 4D sessions included also a horizontal force-velocity test (HF-V) performed under five resistive conditions. For each test, a set of key variables was computed to characterize the lower limb functional recovery. Mixed ANOVA analyses revealed significant (sex × time) interactions, with larger acute drops for men in MVCs and earlier recovery for women in the bilateral MVC (p < 0.001) and DJ (p < 0.05) tests. Only women reported DOMS for the hamstrings at 2D (p < 0.001) and showed small improvements in pure concentric SJ (p < 0.05) and HF-V (p < 0.01) tests at 4D. As expected, DOMS disappeared prior to the complete functional recovery. These results confirmed the combined influence of testing task and sex on the functional recovery pattern while supporting a lesser and faster recovery in women. The originality of this study lies in the complexity and sex-dependence of the functional recovery pattern revealed by a multiple factorial analysis which was used to identify the most discriminating tests and variables in the recovery pattern. The obtained clusters highlighted some recovery profiles associated with greater risks of injury when starting to run again. However, the lack of sex × time interaction for normalized values emphasizes the major influence of men's initially higher functional values compared to women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]