THE EFFECTS OF STATIC STRETCHING AFTER STRENUOUS TRAINING ON ULTRASTRUCTURE AND FLEXIBILITY OF RATS' GASTROCNEMIUS

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to investigate effects of static stretching after strenuous training on the ultrastructure and flexibility of rats' gastrocnemius. 24 male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into three groups: normal control (NC), training control(TC) and stretching group(ST). The results were as follows: 1) The myofilaments became supercontracted and Z discs were obscure in TC. On the contrary, the myofilaments arranged orderly and the Z lines were clear and the mitochondrial cristas were manifolded in ST. 2) Compared with NC, the ultimate tensile strength of gastrocnemius was increased in TC, while the Max. deformation of gastorcnemius was decreased. However, the Max. deformation in ST was increased than that of NC. The conclusion was that the ultrastructure of muscle was resumed and the ability of distortion and flexibility was improved by static stretching, which decreased the risk of injury.