Hypoventilation training is a physical training method in which periods of exercise with reduced breathing frequency are interspersed with periods with normal

breathing Breathing (or ventilation) is the process of moving air into and from the lungs to facilitate gas exchange with the internal environment, mostly to flush out carbon dioxide and bring in oxygen. All aerobic creatures need oxygen for cellula ...

. The hypoventilation technique consists of short breath holdings and can be performed in different types of exercise: running,

cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

, swimming,

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically att ...

, skating, etc. Generally, there are two ways to carry out hypoventilation: at high

lung volume Lung volumes and lung capacities refer to the volume of air in the lungs at different phases of the respiratory cycle. The average total lung capacity of an adult human male is about 6 litres of air. Tidal breathing is normal, resting breathin ...

or at low lung volume. At high lung volume, breath holdings are performed with the lungs full of air (inhalation then breath hold). Conversely, during hypoventilation at low lung volume, breath holdings are performed with the lung half full of air. To do so, one has to first

exhale Exhalation (or expiration) is the flow of the breath out of an organism. In animals, it is the movement of air from the lungs out of the airways, to the external environment during breathing. This happens due to elastic properties of the lungs, ...

normally, without forcing, then hold one's breath. This is called the exhale-hold technique. The scientific studies have shown that only hypoventilation at low lung volume could lead to both a significant decrease in oxygen (O₂) concentrations in the body and an increase in carbon dioxide concentrations (CO₂), which are indispensable for the method to be effective.

History

The first known form of hypoventilation occurred in the 1950s during training of the runners of Eastern Europe and former

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. One of the most famous athletes to have used this method is

Emil Zátopek Emil Zátopek (; 19 September 1922 – 21 November 2000) was a Czech long-distance runner best known for winning three gold medals at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki. He won gold in the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres runs, but his final ...

, the

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech ...

long-distance runner, four times Olympic gold medalist and former holder of 18 world records. Zátopek, who was a precursor in training, regularly used to run by holding his breath to harden his training and simulate the conditions of competition. However, at that time, the effects of hypoventilation training were completely unknown and the method was applied very empirically. At the beginning of the 1970s, American swim coach

James Counsilman James Edward "Doc" Counsilman (December 28, 1920 – January 4, 2004)
P ...

used a new training technique which involved taking a limited number of inhalations while swimming laps in a pool. The effect of this kind of training was determined to decrease the body's O₂ content and simulate

altitude training Altitude training is the practice by some endurance athletes of training for several weeks at high altitude, preferably over above sea level, though more commonly at intermediate altitudes due to the shortage of suitable high-altitude locations. A ...

. Due to the method's efficacy, hypoventilation became a common training method for many swimmers. It is especially from the 1980s that the scientific studies on exercise with reduced breathing frequency began to be published. While the method advocated by Counsilman attracted a following in some runners and athletics coaches, the results of the studies contradicted the hypotheses put forward by the World of Sport. They showed that this training method did not decrease body O₂ concentrations and provoked only a hypercapnic effect, i.e. an increase in CO₂ concentrations. Both the effectiveness and legitimacy of hypoventilation training were strongly challenged. Since the middle of the 2000s, a series of studies has been conducted by French researchers of Paris 13 University to propose a new approach to hypoventilation training. Dr Xavier Woorons and his team hypothesized that if breath holdings were carried out with the lungs half-full of air, rather than full of air as performed so far, it would be possible to significantly reduce body oxygenation. The results that were published confirmed the hypotheses. They demonstrated that through hypoventilation at low lung volume, that is the exhale-hold technique, it was possible, without leaving sea level, to decrease O₂ concentrations in the blood and in the

muscle Skeletal muscles (commonly referred to as muscles) are organs of the vertebrate muscular system and typically are attached by tendons to bones of a skeleton. The muscle cells of skeletal muscles are much longer than in the other types of muscle ...

s at levels corresponding to altitudes above 2000 m.

Physiological effects

When exercise is being performed, if the exhale-hold technique is properly applied, a decrease in O₂ concentrations and an increase in CO₂ concentrations occur in the lungs, the blood and the muscles. The combined effect of hypoxia and

hypercapnia Hypercapnia (from the Greek ''hyper'' = "above" or "too much" and ''kapnos'' = "smoke"), also known as hypercarbia and CO2 retention, is a condition of abnormally elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in the blood. Carbon dioxide is a gaseous pro ...

act as a strong stimulus whose main consequence is to increase

lactic acid Lactic acid is an organic acid. It has a molecular formula . It is white in the solid state and it is miscible with water. When in the dissolved state, it forms a colorless solution. Production includes both artificial synthesis as well as natur ...

and

hydrogen Hydrogen is the chemical element with the symbol H and atomic number 1. Hydrogen is the lightest element. At standard conditions hydrogen is a gas of diatomic molecules having the formula . It is colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxi ...

ions production, and therefore to provoke a strong acidosis in the body. Thus, during exercise with hypoventilation, the blood and

acid–base homeostasis Acid–base homeostasis is the homeostatic regulation of the pH of the body's extracellular fluid (ECF). The proper balance between the acids and bases (i.e. the pH) in the ECF is crucial for the normal physiology of the body—and for cellula ...

is highly disturbed. The studies have also reported an increase in all

heart The heart is a muscular organ in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon dioxide to ...

activity when hypoventilation is carried out in terrestrial sports.

Cardiac output In cardiac physiology, cardiac output (CO), also known as heart output and often denoted by the symbols Q, \dot Q, or \dot Q_ , edited by Catherine E. Williamson, Phillip Bennett is the volumetric flow rate of the heart's pumping output: t ...

heart rate Heart rate (or pulse rate) is the frequency of the heartbeat measured by the number of contractions (beats) of the heart per minute (bpm). The heart rate can vary according to the body's physical needs, including the need to absorb oxygen and excr ...

stroke volume In cardiovascular physiology, stroke volume (SV) is the volume of blood pumped from the left ventricle per beat. Stroke volume is calculated using measurements of ventricle volumes from an echocardiogram and subtracting the volume of the blood ...

and sympathetic modulation to the heart are greater when exercise with hypoventilation is performed in running or cycling. A slightly higher blood pressure has also been recorded. In swimming on the other hand, no significant change in the heart activity has been found. After several weeks of hypoventilation training, physiological adaptations occur that delay the onset of acidosis during a maximal exertion test. The studies have shown that at a given workload, pH and blood

bicarbonate In inorganic chemistry, bicarbonate (IUPAC-recommended nomenclature: hydrogencarbonate) is an intermediate form in the deprotonation of carbonic acid. It is a polyatomic anion with the chemical formula . Bicarbonate serves a crucial biochemic ...

concentrations were higher, whereas lactate concentrations had a tendency to decrease. The reduction in acidosis would be due to an improvement in buffer capacity at the muscle level. However, no change advantageous to aerobic

metabolism Metabolism (, from el, μεταβολή ''metabolē'', "change") is the set of life-sustaining chemical reactions in organisms. The three main functions of metabolism are: the conversion of the energy in food to energy available to run cel ...

has been found. Maximal oxygen uptake (VO₂max), the number of

red blood cells Red blood cells (RBCs), also referred to as red cells, red blood corpuscles (in humans or other animals not having nucleus in red blood cells), haematids, erythroid cells or erythrocytes (from Greek ''erythros'' for "red" and ''kytos'' for "holl ...

and the anaerobic threshold were not modified after hypoventilation training.

Benefits of the method

By delaying acidosis, hypoventilation training would also delay the onset of

fatigue Fatigue describes a state of tiredness that does not resolve with rest or sleep. In general usage, fatigue is synonymous with extreme tiredness or exhaustion that normally follows prolonged physical or mental activity. When it does not resolve ...

and would therefore improve performance during strenuous exertions of short to moderate durations. After several weeks of hypoventilation training, performance gains between 1 and 4% have been reported in running and swimming. The method could be interesting to use in sports requiring strenuous repeated or continuous exertions, whose duration does not exceed a dozen minutes: swimming,

middle-distance running Middle-distance running events are track races longer than sprints, up to 3000 metres. The standard middle distances are the 800 metres, 1500 metres and mile run, although the 3000 metres may also be classified as a middle-distance event. The 15 ...

, cycling,

combat sport A combat sport, or fighting sport, is a competitive contact sport that usually involves one-on-one combat. In many combat sports, a contestant wins by scoring more points than the opponent, submitting the opponent with a hold, disabling the oppo ...

team sport A team sport includes any sport where individuals are organized into opposing teams which compete to win or cooperate to entertain their audience. Team members act together towards a shared objective. This can be done in a number of ways s ...

s, racquet sports, etc. Another advantage of hypoventilation training is to stimulate the anaerobic metabolism without using high exercise intensities, which are more traumatizing for the locomotor system and therefore increase the risk of injuries. Athletes who return progressively to their sporting activity after being injured, and who therefore have to protect their muscles, joints and

tendon A tendon or sinew is a tough, high-tensile-strength band of dense fibrous connective tissue that connects muscle to bone. It is able to transmit the mechanical forces of muscle contraction to the skeletal system without sacrificing its ability ...

s, could train at low or moderate intensity with hypoventilation.

Disadvantages of the method

Hypoventilation training is physically demanding. This method is intended for highly motivated athletes, who do not have pulmonary or cardiovascular issues and whose primary objective is performance. Furthermore, exercising with hypoventilation can provoke headaches if the breath holdings are maintained too long or repeated over a too long period of time. Finally, this training method does not seem to be beneficial for endurance sports.

References

External links

Association for Research and Promotion of Hypoventilation Training (ARPEH)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hypoventilation Training Exercise physiology Training