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Published on: February 20, 2018
Muscle sympathetic nerve activity at rest compared to exercise tolerance.
Arto J Hautala1, Antti M Kiviniemi, Timo H Mäkikallio
1Department of Exercise and Medical Physiology, Verve Research, Kasarmintie 13, PO Box 404, 90101, Oulu, Finland. arto.hautala@verve.fi
European Journal of Applied Physiology
|November 24, 2007
Summary
Lower sympathetic nervous system activity at rest is linked to better running performance in male runners. This finding suggests a connection between baseline sympathetic nerve activity and maximal exercise capacity.
Area of Science:
- Exercise Physiology
- Autonomic Neuroscience
Background:
- Cardiovascular autonomic function influences physical performance and adaptation to exercise.
- The relationship between physical performance and sympathetic nervous system regulation remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between sympathetic nervous system activity and physical performance in male runners.
- To test the hypothesis that higher sympathetic nervous system activity is linked to poorer running performance.
Main Methods:
- Microneurography was used to measure muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) in 26 healthy male club runners at rest.
- Physical performance was evaluated by time to exhaustion during treadmill running.
- Participants were categorized into tertiles based on their running performance.
Main Results:
- Mean resting MSNA was 20 +/- 6 bursts/min, and mean time to exhaustion was 1,005 +/- 136 seconds.
- A significant inverse relationship was observed between MSNA and time to exhaustion (P = 0.032).
- Runners with the best performance exhibited lower MSNA (16 +/- 5 bursts/min) compared to those with the worst performance (23 +/- 7 bursts/min).
Conclusions:
- Baseline sympathetic activity, measured via microneurography, is associated with maximal running performance in healthy male runners.
- Lower resting sympathetic nerve activity may contribute to enhanced endurance capacity.
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Introduction
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Definition
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Purposes
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Definition
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