Is lactic acid in the muscles a friend or an enemy?

Those who do bodybuilding know the painful burning sensation in the muscles, which finally forces us to stop the exercise. This pain is caused by the lactic acid formed in the muscles during movements. How to remove this substance and can it be considered dangerous?

Lactic acid scientists call a biochemical intermediary during carbohydrate metabolism. Carbohydrates, which are considered a source of energy for our muscles, entering the body, are converted into glucose. Most of the glucose enters the bloodstream, and bypasses the liver, it enters the muscles. Here the process of its transformation into lactic acid takes place.

Lactic acid in the muscles consists of two components: lactate ion and hydrogen ion. The last element causes the most painful burning sensation that hinders during training. It interferes with signals supplied by nerves and muscles, weakens muscle contractions and causes a slowdown in energy responses. Since during the training, there is a rapid use of carbons, the level of production of lactic acid increases. Under normal conditions, it quickly gets out of the muscles directly into the blood, and then into the liver, where it serves as a "building material" for the creation of glycogen. But the liver gets only a quarter of its amount: the rest is used as a 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 familiar discomfort. The 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 breather. There is a reduction in blood flow, which causes a feeling of fatigue.

Lactic acid is often credited with unimaginable horrors. For example, the myth that lactic acid in muscles is the cause of pain and cramps after exercise is common. In fact, its level begins to decline immediately after the termination of employment. And if you feel pain in the muscles a couple of days after exercise, then lactic acid here is completely irrelevant - it's already just not there. In this case, the cause is a rupture of the fibers of the muscle tissue (they occur when lifting the weight) or its inflammation. Seizures are due to the fact that muscle receptors are overexcited with muscle fatigue.

As you can see, lactic acid and muscle pain are related only during training. In order to quickly remove this substance from the muscles, athletes often resort to hot baths and massage. But these methods, as studies show, do not affect the level of lactic acid at all. It is much more useful to have an active rest, that is, a change in the load on the muscles. Therefore, most training programs are constructed in such a way that they alternate exercises with intensive workload and endurance exercises. Endurance training, such as running, cycling or swimming, helps muscles to adapt to stress, which also increases the rate of lactic acid withdrawal 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 raw materials for the production of glycogen. As a fuel, it is also used by the circulatory system, through which lactic acid enters from one muscle fiber into another, and also into the liver. As for fatigue after training, the athlete's diet plays an important role here. The presence of a large amount of carbohydrates in the diet helps to replenish the stores of glucose and glycogen consumed during the classes, which in turn reduces the time required for recovery from training.