Acute Physiological Responses to “Recovery Intermittent Hypoxia” in Hiit

Abstract

Introduction: Traditional intermittent hypoxia training improves sport performance after short periods of exposure, but acute exposure to intermittent hypoxia leads to decreased training intensity and technical quality. The solution to overcome these negative effects may be to perform efforts in normoxia and the intervals between efforts in hypoxia, maintaining the quality of training and the benefits of hypoxia. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the acute physiological responses to hypoxia exposure during recovery between high intensity efforts. Materials and methods: Randomized, one-blind, placebo-controlled study. Sixteen men performed a graded exercise test to determine their maximal intensity and two sessions of high-intensity interval training. The training intervals could be in hypoxia (HRT), FIO2: 0.136 or normoxia (NRT), FIO2: 0.209. During the two-minute interval between the ten one-minute efforts, peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO2), heart rate (HR), blood lactate ([La]), blood glucose ([Glu]) were constantly measured. Results: There were differences in HR (TRN = 120 ± 14 bpm; TRH = 129 ± 13 bpm, p < 0.01) and SpO2 (TRN = 96.9 ± 1.0%; TRH = 86.2 ± 3.5%, p < 0.01). No differences in [La] and [Glu] TRN (4.4 ± 1.7 mmol.l-1; 3.9 ± 0.5 mmol.l-1) and TRH (5.2 ± 2.0 mmol.l-1; 4.0 ± 0.8 mmol.l-1, p = 0.17). Conclusion: The possibility of including hypoxia only in the recovery intervals as an additional stimulus to the training, without decreasing the quality of the training, was evidenced. Level of Evidence II; Randomized Clinical Trial of Minor Quality.