Acute Oxidative Effect and Muscle Damage after a Maximum 4 Min Test in High Performance Athletes.

The purpose of this investigation was to determine lipid peroxidation markers, physiological stress and muscle damage in elite kayakers in response to a maximum 4-min kayak ergometer test (KE test), and possible correlations with individual 1000m kayaking performances. The sample consisted of twenty-three adult male and nine adult female elite kayakers, with more than three years' experience in international events, who voluntarily took part in this study. The subjects performed a 10-min warm-up, followed by a 2-min passive interval, before starting the test itself, which consisted of a maximum 4-min work paddling on an ergometer; right after the end of the test, an 8 ml blood sample was collected for analysis.