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

This study investigated whether regular alpine skiing could reverse sarcopenia and muscle weakness in older individuals. Twenty-two older men and women (67 ± 2 years) underwent 12 weeks of recreational skiing, two to three times a week, each session lasting∼3.5 h. An age-matched, inactive group ( n=20, 67 ± 4 years) served as a control (CTRL). Before and after the training period, knee extensors muscle thickness ( T), pennation angle (θ) and fascicle length ( L) of the vastus lateralis muscle were measured by ultrasound. Maximum isokinetic knee extensor torque (MIT) at an angular velocity of 60°/s was measured by dynamometry. After the training, T increased by 7.1% ( P<0.001), L by 5.4% ( P<0.02) and θ by 3.4% ( P<0.05). The increase in T was matched by a significant gain in MIT (13.3%, P<0.001). No significant changes, except for a decrease in θ (2.1%, P<0.02), were found in the CTRL group. The gain in T in the training group correlated significantly with an increase in the focal adhesion kinase 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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]