E-41 Free Communication/Poster - Sleep Deprivation and Thermoregulation

Abstract

The Holistic Athlete project is a collaboration between the Exercise Science program and the Division of Athletics to give athletes and coaches physical performance data to inform their training regimens, and to give exercise science students experience in testing techniques and data analysis. Participating athletes receive a physical performance profile along with recommendations for improvement. The coach receives a team profile. PURPOSE: Observational study to pilot the use of blood lactate testing as part of an athlete profile to inform the training of Division III Collegiate Swimmers. METHODS: Twelve women collegiate swimmers (20.4 ± 1.1 years) were tested aerobically and anaerobically. Swimmers were classified as either sprinters or endurance swimmers based on a questionnaire. Swimmers indicating races over 200m were classified as endurance swimmers. The aerobic test consisted of finding a 400m freestyle swim time that elicited a blood lactate level of between 2.5-3.9 mmol/L and a 400m freestyle swim time that produced a blood lactate level over 4.0 mmol/L. HR was measured immediately after each swim and BLa was measured 1 minute after each swim. The 4.0 mmol/L onset of blood lactate accumulation (OBLA) was found by interpolation of these two data points. The anaerobic test consisted of an all-out 100m swim in each swimmer’s preferred stroke. Blood lactate was measured 1, 3, and 5 minutes after the swim. %max La, %HR at the OBLA, and swim time at the OBLA were calculated. RESULTS: There were four endurance and eight sprint swimmers. The average swim speed at 4.0 OBLA was 71.6 ± 7.7 m/min. The average heartrate at 4.0 OBLA was 163.4 ± 20.0 bpm. This was at 81.9% of the subject’s age-predicted max HR. The average 100 m sprint max BLa was 10.2 ± 2.5 mmol/L and the OBLA was at 41.3 ± 11.0% of the max BLa. There was no significant difference between sprint and endurance swimmers in any variable. CONCLUSIONS: This was a pilot study that demonstrates the feasibility of measuring blood lactate levels during a swim practice. Data will be used to generate norms for female swimmers, to provide a baseline for training, and to assess each swimmer’s anaerobic vs aerobic capability in light of her preferred race distance. Supported by Simmons President’s Fund for Faculty Excellence.