“…IMT is an intervention aimed to strengthen the inspiratory muscles, primarily the diaphragm and other inspiratory muscles such as the external intercostals, scalenes, and sternocleidomastoid ( Celli, 1986 ; Sheel, 2002 ; Ratnovsky and Elad, 2005 ; Dominelli and Sheel, 2012 ; Illi et al, 2012 ; HajGhanbari et al, 2013 ; Shei et al, 2016b ; Reid et al, 2018 ; Walterspacher et al, 2018 ; Ando et al, 2020 ; Derbakova et al, 2020 ). In clinical populations, IMT may aid in overcoming disease-associated pathologies related to the pulmonary system, such as respiratory muscle weakness, altered operating lung volumes, and expiratory flow limitation, thus improving clinical status, exercise capacity, and quality of life ( Aaron et al, 1992a , b ; Lisboa et al, 1994 , 1997 ; Johnson et al, 1995 ; Kosmas et al, 2004 ; Calverley and Koulouris, 2005 ; Dhand, 2005 ; McConnell, 2005 ; Turner et al, 2012 ; Laviolette et al, 2014 ; Price et al, 2014 ; Weatherald et al, 2017 ; Moore et al, 2018 ; Chung et al, 2021 ). Conversely, in healthy and athletic populations, IMT can enhance respiratory muscle function, translating into a potential ergogenic benefit even in the absence of pulmonary system abnormalities.…”