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Sport-Specific Physiological Adaptations in Highly Trained Endurance Athletes
Kari Margrethe Lundgren1, Trine Karlsen, Øyvind Sandbakk
11K.G. Jebsen Center for Exercise in Medicine, Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, NORWAY; 2Department of Cardiology, St. Olavs University Hospital, Trondheim, NORWAY; 3Center for Elite Sports Research, Department of Neuroscience, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, NORWAY; and 4Wales Heart Research Institute, Department of Cardiology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UNITED KINGDOM.
Elite athletes show sport-specific adaptations: cross-country skiers have higher maximal oxygen uptake (V˙O2max), while skiers and kayakers exhibit larger arm artery diameters. These changes are not linked to blood volume (BV) or hemoglobin mass (Hbmass).
Area of Science:
- Exercise Physiology
- Sports Science
- Cardiovascular Adaptations
Background:
- Endurance training induces significant physiological adaptations.
- Different sports demand varying levels of whole-body, lower-body, or upper-body exertion.
- Understanding sport-specific adaptations is crucial for optimizing training and performance.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare maximal oxygen uptake (V˙O2max), blood volume (BV), hemoglobin mass (Hbmass), and brachial endothelial function (flow-mediated dilatation, FMD) among elite athletes from different disciplines.
- To investigate physiological differences between cross-country skiers (whole-body), orienteers (lower-body), and flatwater kayakers (upper-body).
Main Methods:
- Seventeen cross-country skiers, 15 orienteers, and 11 flatwater kayakers underwent testing for V˙O2max, BV, Hbmass, and FMD.
- Body composition and detailed annual training data (type, volume, intensity) were analyzed for all participants.
Main Results:
- Cross-country skiers exhibited significantly higher absolute and body-mass-normalized V˙O2max compared to orienteers.
- Skiers and orienteers showed higher blood volume (BV) when normalized for body mass and fat-free mass compared to kayakers.
- Skiers and kayakers displayed larger brachial artery diameters compared to orienteers, while FMD did not differ significantly across groups.
Conclusions:
- Higher V˙O2max in skiers and larger arm arterial diameters in skiers and kayakers represent sport-specific adaptations to their respective training modes.
- These observed physiological variations are not directly associated with differences in blood volume or hemoglobin mass.
- Chronic endurance training in whole-body and upper-body dominant sports leads to distinct cardiovascular and aerobic capacity adaptations.
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