Effects of physical training and cardiorespiratory physical fitness on exercise-heat tolerance: recent observations

Most authors agree that physical training in a cool environment improves tolerance to exercise in the heat and the rate of heat acclimatization, but the extent or degree of improvement remains controversial. The best improvement in heat tolerance for men is associated with intensive interval or continuous training at a training intensity greater than 50% of maximal oxygen uptake (Vo2max) for 8-12 weeks; the Vo2max should be increased 15-20%. Far less is known about the appropriate type, intensity and duration of endurance training associated with improved exercise-heat tolerance in women. The major benefits of physical training appear to apply to both short term (less than 2 hrs) or long term (greater than 2 hrs) exercise-heat exposures for men. Generally, individuals with high Vo2max values (previously trained and endurance athletes) are at an advantage in the heat. Utilization of proper physical training appears to produce about 50% of the total adjustment resulting from heat acclimatization, while increased fitness is associated with greater retention of acclimatization in cool environments. Female athletes appear somewhat better able to tolerate exercise in hot environments than nonathletic females while differences between highly trained females and males do not appear as dramatic as once thought.