Approaches to describe ventilatory threshold in professional sports

Abstract

Ventilatory threshold is one of the ways to measure cardiovasculatory fitness of the body. Therefore, in the present study it was decided to demonstrate which physiological parameters most accurately express the second ventilatory threshold (VAT2) depending on the cardiovasculatory fitness of different groups of athletes and untrained men. The study involved the following athletes: race walkers (n=14), weightlifters (n=16), powerlifters (n=16), runners (n=14), professional soccer players (n=13), amateur soccer players (n=16), martial arts (n=12), and untrained men (n=15). Subjects’ VAT2 and maximal load (ML) were recorded and at these levels were determined the value of achievable maximal power (P), oxygen uptake (VO2), heart rate (HR), the ratio for oxygen uptake and heart rate (VO2/HR) and the rate-pressure produkt (RPP). It was shown that subjects were of similar age but different body mass (BM) and BMI. There were also differences between athlete groups at VAT2 and ML in relation to: P, VO2, VO2/HR (p<0.001) and RPP only at VAT2 (p<0.023). Reached HR values at VAT2 as well as at ML have not differed between the groups. There were also intergroup differences at VAT2 in terms of relative values: %VO2max (p<0.002), %Pmax(p<0.016), %VO2max/%HRmax (p<0.03). Relatively expressed %HRmax and %RPPmax reached at VAT2 did not differ between the two groups. Runners, professional soccer players and race walkers achieved the most favorable indicators of physical performance. It has been demonstrated that VAT2 besides P i %Pmax was best described by VO2, %VO2max and by VO2/HR and %VO2max/%HRmax, as well as by RPP. On the other hand HR and %HRmax, as well as %RPPmax are not useful in this regard. Furthermore it should be recognized that athletes in whose structure of the training occurred running of varying intensity achieved the highest physical fitness

Keywords

• ventilatory threshhold
• cardiovascular fitness
• athletes