The activity of eight acid hydrolases and two energy metabolism enzymes were assayed from homogenates of predominantly red (proximal heads of m. vastus lateralis, m. vastus medialis, and m. vastus intermedius) and predominantly white (distal head of m. vastus lateralis) skeletal muscle of mice belonging to one of the following groups: 1) sedentary controls, never trained or exhausted; 2) exhausted controls, exhausted once by running on a treadmill 5, 10, or 20 days before killing; 3) trained mice, exercising until killed; 4) exhausted trained mice, exercising until exhausted 5, 10 or 20 days before killing, not exercising during that period; and 5) detrained mice, terminating training 5, 10, or 20 days before killing. In untrained but not in trained animals, exhaustive exercise caused, 5 days afterward, fiber necrosis and a marked increase in the activities of beta-glucuronidase, beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase, arylsulphatase, ribonuclease, deoxyribonuclease, cathepsin D, and cathepsin C, especially in red muscle fibers. Training increased the activities of citrate synthase, beta-glucuronidase, and cathepsin D in both muscle types and those of beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase, arylsulphatase, and cathepsin C in red muscle. Effects of detraining were minor. Exhaustive exercise causes lethal and evidently also sublethal fiber injuries manifesting themselves as an activation of the lysosomal system of muscle fibers 5 days later. Training affects cellular homeostasis by causing an apparent resistance to the damaging effects of exhaustive exercise. Moderately increased hydrolase activities may reflect increased turnover in endurance-trained muscles.