Physiological Changes in Elite Male Distance Runners Training for Olympic Competition

In Brief: Nine elite male distance runners were evaluated by comprehensive periodic monitoring of selected blood chemistry variables, percent body fat and lean body mass, and cardiopulmonary performance as they prepared for the 1984 Olympic Summer Games in Los Angeles. The most consistent changes included a decrease in percent body fat (5.4% to 4.6%, p <.05) and an increase in anaerobic threshold. Compared with a healthy, untrained group matched for age, sex, and height, the runners showed measurable differences in resting pulmonary function, including elevated pulmonary diffusing capacity, maximum voluntary ventilation, and peak expiratory flow rate. Consistent deviations in indexes of iron stores and metabolism were also noted. The extent to which such altered iron status compromises training and competitive performance or may be restored by iron supplementation needs further investigation.