Physiological and Perceptual Internal Load During Kitesurfing Under Real-World Sea Conditions

Area of Science:

• Sports Science
• Exercise Physiology
• Ocean Sports

Background:

• Kitesurfing is a dynamic water sport influenced by variable environmental conditions.
• Limited scientific data exists on the internal physiological load experienced during kitesurfing under controlled ecological constraints.
• Understanding these loads is crucial for training and injury prevention in recreational kitesurfers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify cardiovascular and perceptual responses during a standardized kitesurfing session.
• To investigate the relationship between heart rate-based internal load metrics, perceived exertion, and external performance outputs.
• To provide insights into the physiological demands of kitesurfing in open-water conditions.

Main Methods:

• 112 male recreational kitesurfers completed a 40-50 minute standardized kitesurfing session.
• Continuous heart rate monitoring and post-session rating of perceived exertion (Borg CR10) were employed.
• Calculated metrics included training impulse, % maximal heart rate, and perceived exertion load, analyzed against GPS data.

Main Results:

• Kitesurfing sessions maintained a high average intensity of 78.4% of maximal heart rate.
• Strong correlations were found between training impulse and % maximal heart rate (r=0.90, p<0.001).
• Training impulse showed a moderate association with perceived exertion load (r=0.46, p<0.001), but no significant link to GPS-derived speed or distance.

Conclusions:

• Standardized kitesurfing sessions induce sustained high submaximal cardiovascular strain.
• Internal load measures (heart rate, perceived exertion) are consistent with each other.
• External performance metrics from GPS lack significant association with internal load in this ecological setting, suggesting combined internal measures are best for assessing kitesurfing effort.