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The effects of deep heat application during aerobic sporting performance
Govindasamy Balasekaran1, Nurul A Azmi2, Si Y Koh2
1Human Bioenergetics Laboratory, Physical Education & Sports Science, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore - govindasamy.b@nie.edu.sg.
Background:
To investigate the effectiveness of the application of deep heat cream (DH) on the skin prior to aerobic exercise.
Methods:
A total of 15 healthy male participants (age: 24.40±2.26 years, height: 1.70±0.08 m, weight: 64.73±8.66 kg, Body Mass Index: 22.28±1.94 kg/m-2, maximal oxygen consumption [VO
Results:
Results indicated significant differences between treatments for TTE (DH: 487.00±143.68 s vs. PC: 403.80±123.66 s, P=0.02); average RPE (DH: 15.82±1.82 vs. PC: 14.31±1.39, P=0.01). There were positive significant correlations between treatments for average HR (DH: 163.76±13.55 beats·min-1 vs. PC: 158.42±31.76 beats·min-1, r=0.58, P=0.02); last stage HR (DH: 176.87±15.29 beats·min-1 vs. PC: 174.93±16.67 beats·min-1, r=0.80, P=0.00).
Conclusions:
Deep heat application before exercise has shown to significantly improve endurance performance. Athletes or sports enthusiasts may consider using deep heat before exercise to achieve optimal endurance performance. More studies are needed to explore the benefits of deep heat application during exercise performance.
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