Skeletal muscle remodeling in response to alpine skiing training in older individuals

Abstract

This study investigated whether regular alpine skiing could reverse sarcopenia and muscle weakness in older individuals. Twenty-two older men and women (67 ± 2 yr) underwent 12 weeks of recreational skiing, 2-3 times a week, each session lasting ~3.5 hours. An age-matched, inactive group (n = 20, 67 ± 4 yr) served as control (CTRL). Before and after the training period, knee extensors muscle thickness (Tm), pennation angle () and fascicle length (Lf) of the vastus lateralis muscle, were measured by ultrasound. Maximum isokinetic knee extensor torque (MIT) at an angular velocity of 60 deg/s was measured by dynamometry. After the training, Tm increased by 7.1% (P<0.001), Lf by 5.4% (P<0.02) and  by 3.4% (P<0.05). The increase in Tm was matched by a significant gain in MIT (13.3%, P<0.001). No significant changes, except for a decrease in  (2.1%, P<0.02) were found in the CTRL group. The gain in Tm in the training group significantly correlated with an increase in focal adhesion kinase (FAK) content, pointing to a primary role of this mechano-sensitive protein in sarcomere remodeling with muscle hypertrophy. Overall, the results show that alpine skiing is an effective intervention for combating sarcopenia and weakness in old age.