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Supramaximal Intensity Hypoxic Exercise and Vascular Function Assessment in Mice
Published on: March 15, 2019
Is hypoxia training good for muscles and exercise performance?
1Department of Anatomy, University of Bern, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland. michael.vogt@ana.unibe.ch <michael.vogt@ana.unibe.ch>
Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases
|April 27, 2010
Summary
The "live low-train high" altitude training method, where athletes train in hypoxia and live in normoxia, shows promise for improving performance at altitude. However, its benefits for sea-level performance are not consistently proven, though it does induce specific muscle adaptations.
Area of Science:
- Sports Science
- Exercise Physiology
- Altitude Training
Background:
- Altitude training is popular for enhancing athletic performance and acclimatization.
- Key methods include 'live high-train low' and 'live low-train high'.
- This review examines the 'live low-train high' approach's functional, muscular, and practical aspects.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the 'live low-train high' approach in altitude training.
- To analyze its effects on exercise performance and muscle adaptations.
- To evaluate its utility for athletes.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing research on 'live low-train high' training.
- Analysis of studies involving training in hypoxia (2300-5700m) for varying durations.
- Examination of muscle structural, biochemical, molecular, and performance data.
Main Results:
- Hypoxia training shows a specific role in endurance adaptation at the muscle level.
- Performance data (Vo(2)max, power output) do not consistently show sea-level benefits.
- Stronger evidence supports benefits for performance at altitude.
Conclusions:
- 'Live low-train high' may be beneficial for altitude acclimatization when direct altitude exposure is not feasible.
- Hypoxia induces specific gene expression changes in muscle tissue.
- The translation of these molecular changes to observable functional improvements requires further investigation, especially for elite athletes.
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