Resistance- and endurance-trained young men display comparable carotid artery strain parameters that are superior to untrained men

Hornby-Foster, Ian, Richards, Cory T ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3605-7044, Drane, Aimee L., Lodge, Freya M., Stembridge, Michael, Lord, Rachel N., Davey, Hannah, Yousef, Zaheer and Pugh, Christopher J. A. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5932-4793 (2025) Resistance- and endurance-trained young men display comparable carotid artery strain parameters that are superior to untrained men. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 125 (1). pp. 131-144. doi:10.1007/s00421-024-05598-w

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Abstract

Central arterial stiffness, a predictor of cardiovascular risk, attenuates with endurance-exercise in ageing populations. However, in young individuals, this effect is inconsistent and emerging evidence suggests resistance-exercise may increase arterial stiffness. Two-dimensional (2D)-Strain imaging of the common carotid artery (CCA) is more sensitive at detecting endurance-training induced alterations in CCA stiffness than conventional methods, but has not been used to examine CCA stiffness in young resistance-trained individuals. Therefore, we compared CCA 2D-Strain parameters at rest, during acute exercise and recovery between resistance-trained, endurance-trained, and untrained young men. Methods Short-axis CCA ultrasound images were obtained from 12 endurance-trained [27yrs (95%CI; 24–29)], 14 resistance-trained [24yrs (23–26)] and 12 untrained [23yrs (22–24] men at rest, during isometric handgrip (IHG) exercise and recovery. 2D-Strain analysis quantified CCA peak circumferential strain (PCS) and systolic (S-SR) and diastolic (D-SR) strain rates. Conventional stiffness indices included aortic pulse-wave velocity, CCA β -stiffness ( β 1 ) and Petersons elastic modulus ( E p ). Results Resting conventional stiffness indices were not different between groups ( P > 0.05). Resting PCS and S-SR were comparable between resistance- [11.6% (10.6–12.5) and 1.46 s −1 (1.37–1.55), respectively] and endurance-trained [11.4% (10.7–12.2) and 1.5 s −1 (1.38–1.62)] men and superior to untrained men [9.5% (9.19–9.9); P < 0.004 and 1.24 s −1 (1.17 – 1.31); P < 0.018)]. Both trained groups displayed comparable reductions in PCS and S-SR during IHG, which returned to resting values during recovery ( P < 0.001), whereas these parameters remained unchanged in untrained men. D-SR decreased during IHG in all groups ( P < 0.001), but to a lesser extent in endurance-trained men ( P < 0.023), whereas β 1 and E p increased to a similar magnitude in all groups and returned to resting values during recovery ( P < 0.001). Conclusion Resistance- and endurance-trained men display comparable CCA 2D-Strain parameters that are superior to untrained men, which contends previous reports that resistance-training increases CCA stiffness.

Item Type:	Article
Article Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Two-dimensional strain imaging; Carotid artery stiffness; Resistance-exercise; Endurance-exercise; Arterial health
Subjects:	Q Science > QP Physiology
Divisions:	Schools and Research Institutes > School of Education, Health and Sciences
Depositing User:	Cory Richards
Date Deposited:	17 Nov 2025 15:24
Last Modified:	17 Nov 2025 15:30
URI:	https://eprints.glos.ac.uk/id/eprint/15539

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