0000000000287836
AUTHOR
Mette Hansen
The Female Handball Player
Female hormones fluctuate in concentrations during the menstrual cycle. This has triggered speculations among athletes, coaches, as well as researchers about the hormonal changes that lead to variations in athletic performance and adaptation to training. Many athletes, as in the general population, use oral contraceptives. This has raised questions concerning the suppression of the endogenous circulating female hormones and if the administration of synthetic hormones may have negative impact on athletic performance and training adaptations – or the opposite.
Impact of oral contraceptive use and menstrual phases on patellar tendon morphology, biochemical composition, and biomechanical properties in female athletes
Sex differences exist with regards to ligament and tendon injuries. Lower collagen synthesis has been observed in exercising women vs. men, and in users of oral contraceptives (OC) vs. nonusers, but it is unknown if OC will influence tendon biomechanics of women undergoing regular training. Thirty female athletes (handball players, 18–30 yr) were recruited: 15 long-term users of OC (7.0 ± 0.6 yr) and 15 nonusers (>5 yr). Synchronized values of patellar tendon elongation (obtained by ultrasonography) and tendon force were sampled during ramped isometric knee extensor maximum voluntary contraction to estimate mechanical tendon properties. Furthermore, tendon cross-sectional area and lengt…
Influence of Oral Contraceptive Use on Adaptations to Resistance Training
Introduction: The majority of young women use oral contraceptives (OCs). Use of OCs has been associated with lower myofibrillar protein and tendon collagen synthesis rates, but it is unknown whether OCs will limit the adaptive response of myotendinous tissue to resistance training. Design and Methods: Fourteen healthy untrained young regular OC users (24 +/- 1 years, fat% 32 +/- 1, 35 +/- 2 ml.min(-1).kg(-1)) and 14 NOC users (non-OC, controls) (24 +/- 1 years, fat% 32 +/- 2, 34 +/- 2 ml.min(-1).kg(-1)) performed a 10-week supervised lower extremity progressive resistance training program. Before and after the intervention biopsies from the vastus lateralis muscle and the patellar tendon we…