Effects of sprint interval training on elite Judoists.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of sprint interval training (SIT) compared to control group (CG). 29 Judoists were assigned to SIT group (n=11, age 20.00±1.10 years) and CG (n=18, age 19.94±1.16 years). There were no significant changes in body fat and aerobic performance (VO2max, HRmax, and HR after Judo match) after 4 and 8 weeks. However, anaerobic peak power and mean power in SIT group was significantly increased by 16% and 17% at 4 weeks and by 17% and 22% at 8 weeks compared to baseline values (p<0.05). At 8 weeks, blood lactate concentration after graded exercise was significantly decreased in SIT group compared to CG after 10 and 15 min of recovery (p< 0.05). After Judo match, triglyceride and epinephrine were significantly increased in CG compared to SIT group (p<0.05) at 4 and 8 weeks. Otherwise, there were no significant changes of total cholesterol, albumin, FFA, and norepinephrine in both groups. We suggested that SIT program for elite Judoists would be effective to increase anaerobic power in a short period during off-season training.

A lactate-guided conditioning programme to improve endurance performance.

Blood lactate measurements are used widely in horses to assess athletic performance, but there are few published data on using lactate as a guide for endurance improvement. The velocity at which blood lactate concentration ([LA]) of 4 mmol/l is reached (v4) is widely used to determine fitness. In an earlier study of v4, exercise at low intensities for longer duration was more effective at improving endurance than shorter, higher intensities. However, the prescription was unchanged during the study (6 weeks). We hypothesised that, to produce greater improvement in v4 in the same time frame, it is necessary to adjust conditioning regimes more frequently. Six horses underwent an initial treadmill-based standard exercise test (SET). A regression analysis [LA]-speed relationship was used to calculate v2. Horses were then conditioned for 45 min at their calculated v2 3 times/week (6% incline). Every 2 weeks the horses performed an SET to evaluate the v2 conditioning protocol which ended with SET 4. Mean v4 increased 17% from SET 1 to SET 4 (P = 0.003; 5.8 +/- 03 to 6.8 +/- 0.4 m/s). This study demonstrates that a lactate-guided conditioning programme can significantly enhance endurance performance over a 6-week time peroid when the conditioning protocol is adjusted every 2 weeks based on v4 improvement.