Those involved in bodybuilding are well aware of the painful burning sensation in the muscles, which in the end forces us to stop doing the exercise. This pain is caused by the lactic acid formed during the movements in the muscles. How to remove this substance and can it be considered dangerous?
Scientists call lactic acid a biochemical mediator during carbohydrate metabolism. Carbohydrates, which are considered a source of energy for our muscles, enter the body and turn into glucose. Most glucose enters the bloodstream, and bypasses the liver and enters the muscles. Here, the process of its conversion to lactic acid takes place.
Lactic acid in muscles consists of two components: a lactate ion and a hydrogen ion. The last element also causes the very painful burning sensation that interferes so much during training. It interferes with the signals supplied by nerves and muscles, weakens muscle contractions and causes a slowdown in energy reactions. As carbohydrates are consumed quickly during training, the level of lactic acid production increases. Under normal conditions, it quickly enters from the muscles directly into the bloodstream, and then into the liver, where it serves as the “building material” to create glycogen. But only a quarter of its quantity gets into the liver: the rest is used as fuel for “slow” muscle fibers. With intensive training, lactic acid does not have time to get out of the muscles and accumulates there, which causes unpleasant sensations familiar to us. A condition in which lactic acid in the muscles accumulates faster than it is derived from them is called the lactate threshold. For the nervous system, this level of lactic acid is a signal that the body needs a break. There is a decrease in blood flow, which causes a feeling of fatigue.
Unthinkable horrors are often credited with lactic acid. For example, the myth that lactic acid in muscles causes pain and cramps after exercise is common. In fact, its level begins to decline immediately after the termination of classes. And if you feel muscle pain after a couple of days after exercise, then lactic acid has nothing to do with it - it simply isn’t there anymore. In this case, the cause is a break in the fibers of the muscle tissue (they occur during weight lifting) or its inflammation. Convulsions occur due to the fact that muscle receptors are overexcited by muscle fatigue.
As you can see, lactic acid and muscle pain are interconnected only during training. In order to quickly remove this substance from the muscles, athletes often resort to hot baths and massage. But these methods, studies show, do not affect the level of lactic acid at all. An active rest is much more useful, that is, a change in the load on the muscles. Therefore, most training programs are designed in such a way that they alternate with intense exercise and endurance exercises. Endurance training, such as running, cycling or swimming, helps the muscles to adapt to stress, which also allows you to increase the rate of lactic acid removal from muscle tissue.
Thus, lactic acid in the muscles is more likely our assistant. It serves as a source of energy for our muscles and as a raw material for glycogen production. The circulatory system also uses it as fuel, through which lactic acid passes from one muscle fiber to another, as well as to the liver. As for fatigue after training, the athlete's diet plays a big role here. The presence of a large amount of carbohydrates in the diet helps to replenish the reserves of glucose and glycogen that are consumed during classes, which, in turn, reduces the time required for recovery after training.