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Cardiac dimensions in athletes in relation to variations in their training program
Insights
Male endurance athletes exhibit greater cardiac dimensions and left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) compared to controls. Cardiac adaptations to training load changes occur slowly, with performance peaking during competitive seasons.
Area of Science:
- Sports Medicine
- Cardiology
- Physiology
Background:
- Endurance athletes often display cardiac adaptations.
- The impact of training seasonality on these adaptations requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare cardiac dimensions and left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) in male long-distance runners (LDR) and cycle racers (CR) across different training seasons.
- To assess maximal aerobic performance in relation to training phases.
Main Methods:
- Echocardiography was used to measure cardiac dimensions in athletes and control subjects (CS) across four training seasons.
- Electrocardiography assessed left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH).
- Maximal aerobic performance was determined using a bicycle ergometer.
Main Results:
- Athletes consistently showed significantly greater left ventricular mass, interventricular septum thickness, left ventricular posterior wall thickness, and left ventricular internal diameter than CS.
- Electrocardiographic findings confirmed LVH in athletes.
- No significant cardiac dimension differences were found between the four training seasons, despite training variations.
- Maximal aerobic performance varied by season, with higher workloads in competitive phases for LDR and lower values during rest for CR.
Conclusions:
- Athletes exhibit persistent cardiac adaptations (LVH) regardless of training season.
- Cardiac dimension adaptation to training load variations is a slow process.
- Performance metrics fluctuate seasonally, indicating a lag in cardiac response to training intensity changes.
Abstract:
The cardiac dimensions of male long-distance runners (LDR) and cycle racers (CR) were determined echocardiographically during four different training seasons, i.e., a preparation, a competitive, a slowing-down and a resting season, and were compared with those of control subjects (CS). Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) was also assessed from the electrocardiogram. The maximal aerobic performance was determined on a bicycle ergometer. In the athletes, left ventricular mass was significantly greater in all seasons than the values in the CS. This difference resulted from a thicker interventricular septum and left ventricular posterior wall as well as a larger left ventricular internal diameter. The existence of LVH was confirmed by the electrocardiographic findings. No differences were observed between the four different training seasons, despite considerable changes in the training program for weeks to months. The maximal aerobic performance test in LDR showed a significantly higher workload during the competitive than during the preparation season. The CR reached significantly lower values during the resting season than during the other seasons. The results indicate that the possible adaptation of the cardiac dimensions to variations in the heaviness of the training program is relatively slow.