Abstract
PURPOSE: To examine the effect of a 5-day training protocol in the heat on physiological acclimation, perceptual responses, and 16 km time-trial performance in moderate hypoxia. METHODS: Twelve well-trained, healthy male participants (age = 27 ± 8 years; VO2peak = 66.52 ± 4.94 ml·kg-1·min-1) were randomly assigned to a hot (HOT; 40°C, 35% RH) or control (CON; 18°C, 35% RH) group, and completed five consecutive days of cycling for 60 min at 50% VO2peak. Participants completed a 16 km time-trial in hypoxia (FiO2 = 0.165; SpO2 = 86.00 ± 2.64), pre- (TT1) and post-training (TT2), to determine if heat training enhanced hypoxic cycling performance. Rectal core temperature (Tre), heart rate, and rating of perceived exertion were assessed through the training protocol. RESULTS: Time to completion from TT1 (HOT = 1637 ± 110 s, CON = 1684 ± 117 s) to TT2 (HOT = 1617 ± 118 s, CON = 1671 ± 109 s) was reduced (p = 0.029); however, there was no interaction between groups (p = 0.599). There was no difference in mean (p = 0.443) or peak heart rate (p = 0.651) between TT1 and TT2 across both groups. Training resulted in a reduction in resting heart rate (Day 1: HOT = 61 ± 14 beats·min-1, CON = 72 ± 4 beats·min-1 vs. Day 5: HOT = 58 ± 11 beats·min-1 CON = 66 ± 6 beats·min-1; p = 0.049) and rating of perceived exertion (Day 1: HOT = 4 ± 1, CON = 3 ± 2 vs Day 5: HOT = 3 ± 1, CON = 2 ± 1; p = 0.001); however, there was no interaction between the groups. There was no significant difference in Tre (p = 0.836), mean exercising Tre (p = 0.127), or peak exercising Tre (p = 0.152) responses between Day 1 and Day 5 of the training protocol. CONCLUSION: This study found that the 5-day training protocol improved time-trial performance in hypoxia; however, there was no perceptual, physiological or performance benefits associated with training in the heat compared to normoxic conditions.
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