Ventilatory threshold and VO2max changes in children following endurance training

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Exercise Science
• Sports Physiology
• Cardiorespiratory Fitness

Background:

• Conflicting data exist regarding the impact of endurance training on children's physiological responses.
• Understanding the effects of structured training is crucial for promoting child health and athletic development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effects of an 8-week run training program on ventilatory threshold (VT) and maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) in untrained male children.
• To determine if improvements in cardiorespiratory fitness markers are significant and attributable to the training intervention.

Main Methods:

• Eight previously untrained male children (10-14 years) participated in an 8-week running program (4 days/week).
• Training included continuous running (2 days/week, 10-30 min at 70-80% VO2max) and interval running (2 days/week, 100-800m at 90-100% VO2max).
• Incremental treadmill tests were conducted before and after training to assess VT and VO2max.

Main Results:

• Ventilatory threshold (VT) increased significantly by 19.4% (30.5 to 36.4 ml.kg-1.min-1).
• VT as a percentage of VO2max increased significantly from 66.6% to 73.8%.
• VO2max showed a significant 7.5% increase (45.9 to 49.4 ml.kg-1.min-1).
• No significant changes were observed in a control group of age- and size-matched children.

Conclusions:

• Eight weeks of consistent endurance running training can significantly enhance cardiorespiratory fitness in male children.
• The training program, characterized by sufficient frequency, intensity, and duration, effectively improved both VT and VO2max.
• These findings provide evidence supporting the implementation of structured endurance training for improving aerobic capacity in pediatric populations.