Almond Consumption Modestly Improves Pain Ratings, Muscle Force Production, and Biochemical Markers of Muscle Damage Following Downhill Running in Mildly Overweight, Middle-Aged Adults: A Randomized, Crossover Trial.

Background: Almonds promote cardiometabolic health benefits; however, the ergogenic effect of almond supplementation on exercise recovery is less explored.

Objectives: We evaluated the impacts of raw, shelled, almonds on pain, muscle force production, and biochemical indices of muscle damage and inflammation during recovery from eccentrically biased exercise.

Methods: Using a randomized, crossover design, 26 healthy adults (37 ± 6 y) ran downhill (-10%) for 30 min at a heart rate corresponding to 65%-70% of maximal oxygen consumption followed by 3-d recovery periods after 8-wk adaptations to either ALMOND (2 oz/d) or isocaloric pretzel (CONTROL) feedings.

Pistachios as a recovery food following downhill running exercise in recreational team-sport individuals.

We aimed to investigate the impact of pistachio nut consumption on muscle soreness and function following exercise-induced muscle damage. Using a randomised cross-over design, male team-sport players ( = 18) performed a 40-minute downhill treadmill run to induce muscle damage, which was conducted after 2-wks of consuming either control (CON, water), a standard dose of daily pistachios (STD, 42.5 g/d) or a higher dose of daily pistachios (HIGH, 85 g/d).

Effects of short-term pistachio consumption before and throughout recovery from an intense exercise bout on cardiometabolic markers.

Although pistachios have been shown to improve cardiometabolic biomarkers in diseased and at-risk populations, less research has been conducted on young, healthy individuals. Furthermore, some but not all research indicates that exercise acutely improves cardiometabolic markers; however, it remains unclear as to why outcomes vary among studies. This research evaluated secondary aims of a study designed to assess the impacts of pistachios on recovery from vigorous eccentrically-biased exercise.