LEGAL PERFORMANCE ENHANCEMENT STRATEGIES Chapter 15

High-Altitude Training  What do we already know? -Quick write two minutes

High- altitude training  At altitudes in excess of about 200meters, the amount of oxygen available to the body is significantly less than at sea level.  When the brain senses that we are not receiving normal levels of oxygen, it produces a greater number of red blood cells.  This increases the ability of the blood to transport oxygen to working muscles and tissue.

What are some acute responses?  Increased breathing rate  Increased heart rate  Reduced blood flow to the brain  Headache, nausea  Sleeplessness  Decrease in VO2 max Note: collectively these responses reduces the athletes work capacity. It can take an athlete three weeks to acclimatise to these new environmental conditions.

Results  It usually takes an athlete three months to achieve a greater oxygen capacity at altitude than could be attained at sea level.  High altitude training adaptations will be retained for one to three months after moving back to sea level. altitude-training-camps-but-do-they-actually-do-much-for- the-players/story-fndv7pj

Significant adaptations  Increased erythrocyte volume  Increased haemoglobin volume and concentration  Increased blood viscosity  Increased capillarisation rA

Altitude tents  The decreased VO2 max and inability to conduct extended arrobic training at altitude has seen the development of the live high, train low model.  Athletes sleep at an altitude of meters but train at sea level.  Sleeping in a simulated- altitude environment allows the body to achieve some of the same adaptations obtained at altitude, while permitting the athlete to train at an oxygen rich lower altitude where muscles can perform at their normal work level.

Advantage of altitude tents  Remains at normal pressure  Athletes don’t need to deal the low pressure associated with high pressure (disrupts training)

Intermittent hypoxic training  Involves athletes wearing a hypoxic mask to simulate training under high altitude conditions, taking a break from the hypoxic mask and then returning to training.  Helps to decrease the need for oxygen by about 15 to 20 per cent increasing the ability to use oxygen as measured by VO2 max.

This training increases the efficiency with which the body takes up, transports and utilises oxygen.

Results  The heart and lungs increase their work rate and (in the long term) increases in size= this leads to long term decrease in resting and submaximal heart rates and blood pressure.  Pulmonary oxygen absorption increases.  The dilation of capillaries increases, making it easier for red blood cells to get into the capillaries and allowing greater volumes of blood and oxygen to be transported. Y