The Responses of Fibrinolytic Factors to Different Resistance Exercise Protocols

The purpose of this study was to investigate the responses of fibrinolytic factors to different resistance exercise protocols. Ten healthy male subjects (age, 24.7±2.2 yrs; height, 177±7 cm; and weight, 77±7 kg) familiar with weight training participated in four separate trials one week apart. After determining the maximal strength at the first session, subjects performed three resistance exercise protocols randomly at the 2nd, 3rd and 4th session including endurance-strength (3 sets, 15 reps at 55% one repetition maximum (1-RM) with 1 min rest), hypertrophy (3 sets, 10 reps at 70% 1-RM with 2 min rest) and strength (3 sets, 4-5 reps at 85% of 1-RM with 2 min rest). For measuring tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) and plasminogen activator inhibitor one (PAI-1) blood samples were taken before and immediately after exercise. The results showed that resistance exercise protocols resulted in significant increases in t-PA levels (P=0.007), while the PAI-1 levels did not change significantly (P=0.529). Comparing the changes among the sessions showed that increases in t-PA following endurance-strength protocol was higher compared to the other two protocols. Based on the findings of the present study, it could be concluded that resistance exercise increases activity of fibrinolytic system and reduces the thrombus formation, and that these effects are more pronounced in the endurance-strength protocol.