The effects of classic altitude training on hemoglobin mass in swimmers
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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
The effects of classic altitude training on hemoglobin mass in swimmers N. B. Wachsmuth • C. Vo¨lzke • N. Prommer • A. Schmidt-Trucksa¨ss • F. Frese • O. Spahl • A. Eastwood • J. Stray-Gundersen • W. Schmidt
Received: 20 April 2012 / Accepted: 20 October 2012 / Published online: 9 November 2012 Ó Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2012
Abstract Aim of the study was to determine the influence of classic altitude training on hemoglobin mass (Hb-mass) in elite swimmers under the following aspects: (1) normal oscillation of Hb-mass at sea level; (2) time course of adaptation and de-adaptation; (3) sex influences; (4) influences of illness and injury; (5) interaction of Hb-mass and competition performance. Hb-mass of 45 top swimmers (male 24; female 21) was repeatedly measured (*6 times) over the course of 2 years using the optimized CO-rebreathing method. Twenty-five athletes trained between one and three times for 3–4 weeks at altitude training camps (ATCs) at 2,320 m (3 ATCs) and 1,360 m (1 ATC). Performance was determined by analyzing 726 competitions according to the German point system. The variation of
Hb-mass without hypoxic influence was 3.0 % (m) and 2.7 % (f). At altitude, Hb-mass increased by 7.2 ± 3.3 % (p \ 0.001; 2,320 m) and by 3.8 ± 3.4 % (p \ 0.05; 1,360 m). The response at 2,320 m was not sex-related, and no increase was found in ill and injured athletes (n = 8). Hb-mass was found increased on day 13 and was still elevated 24 days after return (4.0 ± 2.7 %, p \ 0.05). Hb-mass had only a small positive effect on swimming performance; an increase in performance was only observed 25–35 days after return from altitude. In conclusion, the altitude (2,320 m) effect on Hb-mass is still present 3 weeks after return, it decisively depends on the health status, but is not influenced by sex. In healthy subjects it exceeds by far the oscillation occurring at sea level. After return from altitude performance increases after a delay of 3 weeks.
Communicated by Guido Ferretti.
Keywords Altitude Acclimatization Sex influence Illness Injury Competition performance
N. B. Wachsmuth (&) C. Vo¨lzke N. Prommer W. Schmidt Department of Sports Medicine/Sports Physiology, University of Bayreuth, 95440 Bayreuth, Germany e-mail: [email protected] A. Schmidt-Trucksa¨ss Institute of Exercise and Health, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland F. Frese Department of Sports Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany O. Spahl German Olympic Sports Confederation, Frankfurt, Germany A. Eastwood Sport Science Unit, South Australian Sports Institute, Adelaide, Australia J. Stray-Gundersen The Cooper Clinic, McKinney, TX, USA
Introduction Total hemoglobin mass (Hb-mass) is one key factor in endurance performance because it limits oxygen transport and thereby muscle tissue oxygen availability in elite athletes. Under normoxic conditions, a change in Hb-mass of 1 g is associated with a change in VO2max of approximately 4 ml/min (Schmidt and Prommer 2010). Therefore, one goal
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