Concurrent inspiratory muscle and cardiovascular training differentially improves both perceptions of effort and 5000 m running performance compared with cardiovascular training alone

• Published in: British journal of sports medicine 2008-10, Vol.42 (10), p.823-827
• Main Authors: Edwards, A M, Wells, C, Butterly, R
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anaerobic Threshold - physiology; Athletic Performance - physiology; Brain research; Cardiovascular System; Exercise; Exercise Tolerance - physiology; Fatigue; Fitness equipment; Humans; Influence; Male; Metabolism; Metabolites; Oxygen Consumption - physiology; Perceptions; Physical Education and Training - methods; Physical Endurance - physiology; Physical fitness; Physiology; Reductionism; Researchers; Respiratory Muscles - physiology; Running; Running - physiology; Sports medicine; Studies
• ISSN: 0306-3674; 1473-0480
• DOI: 10.1136/bjsm.2007.045377

Objective:To examine whether inspiratory muscle training (IMT) is a useful additional technique with which to augment cardiovascular exercise training adaptations.Methods:16 healthy untrained males agreed to participate in the study and were randomly assigned to training (TRA; n = 8) and placebo (PLA; n = 8) groups. Pre- and post-training measurements of spirometry and maximal inspiratory mouth pressure (MIP) were taken in addition to i) maximal aerobic power (VO2max) and ii) 5000 m run time-trial. All subjects completed the same 4 week cardiovascular training programme which consisted of three running sessions (CV1: 5×1000 m, CV2: 3×1600 m, SP1: 20 min run) in each of the 4 weeks. IMT was performed daily by both groups using an inspiratory muscle trainer (POWERbreathe). TRA completed 30 maximal inspirations while PLA inspired 30 times against a negligible resistance.Results:Mean MIP increased significantly in both groups (TRA: 14.5 (SD 6.8)% change, PLA: 7.8 (7.4)% change) from pre- to post-training (p