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ARTICLE
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Physiological responses and energy expenditure during competitive fencing Raffaele Milia, Silvana Roberto, Marco Pinna, Girolamo Palazzolo, Irene Sanna, Massimo Omeri, Simone Piredda, Gianmario Migliaccio, Alberto Concu, and Antonio Crisafulli
Abstract: Fencing is an Olympic sport in which athletes fight one against one using bladed weapons. Contests consist of three 3-min bouts, with rest intervals of 1 min between them. No studies investigating oxygen uptake and energetic demand during fencing competitions exist, thus energetic expenditure and demand in this sport remain speculative. The aim of this study was to understand the physiological capacities underlying fencing performance. Aerobic energy expenditure and the recruitment of lactic anaerobic metabolism were determined in 15 athletes (2 females and 13 males) during a simulation of fencing by using a portable gas analyzer (MedGraphics VO2000), which was able to provide data on oxygen uptake, carbon dioxide production and heart rate. Blood lactate was assessed by means of a portable lactate analyzer. Average group energetic expenditure during the simulation was (mean ± SD) 10.24 ± 0.65 kcal·min−1, corresponding to 8.6 ± 0.54 METs. Oxygen uptakeand heart rate were always below the level of anaerobic threshold previously assessed during the preliminary incremental test, while blood lactate reached its maximum value of 6.9 ± 2.1 mmol·L−1 during the final recovery minute between rounds. Present data suggest that physical demand in fencing is moderate for skilled fencers and that both aerobic energy metabolism and anaerobic lactic energy sources are moderately recruited. This should be considered by coaches when preparing training programs for athletes. Key words: oxygen uptake, carbon dioxide production, blood lactate, heart rate, anaerobic threshold. Résumé : L’escrime est un sport olympique dans lequel les athlètes s’affrontent avec des armes blanches. Une épreuve comprend 3 assauts de 3 minutes chacun avec 1 minute de repos entre les assauts. Il n’y a pas d’études traitant de la consommation d’oxygène et des exigences énergétiques durant les compétitions d’escrime; la dépense énergétique et les exigences énergétiques de ce sport ne sont encore que spéculatives. Cette étude se propose d’évaluer les capacités physiologiques durant une performance a` l’escrime. On évalue la dépense d’énergie en aérobiose et la sollicitation du métabolisme anaérobie lactique chez 15 athlètes (2 femmes, 13 hommes) au cours d’une simulation a` l’escrime en utilisant un analyseur de gaz portatif (MedGraphics VO2000) pour déterminer la consommation d’oxygène, la production de gaz carbonique et le rythme cardiaque. On évalue la concentration sanguine de lactate au moyen d’un analyseur de lactate portatif. La dépense énergétique moyenne au cours de la simulation est (moyenne ± écart-type) de 10,24 ± 0,65 kcal·min−1, soit 8,6 ± 0,54 METs. La consommation d’oxygène et le rythme cardiaque se situent toujours sous le seuil anaérobie évalué précédemment au cours d’un test d’effort progressif; la sanguine de lactate atteint une valeur maximale de 6,9 ± 2,1 mmol·L−1 durant la dernière minute de récupération entre les épreuves. D’après les résultats de cette étude, les exigences énergétiques de l’escrime sont modérées pour des escrimeurs compétents et les deux sources d’énergie, aérobie et anaérobie lactique, sont sollicitées modérément. Les entraîneurs devraient prendre en compte ces données au moment de préparer des programmes d’entraînement pour les athlètes. [Traduit par la Rédaction] Mots-clés : consommation d’oxygène, production de gaz carbonique, lactate sanguin, rythme cardiaque, seuil anaérobie.
Introduction Fencing is a combat sport between 2 athletes who fence each other using 1 of 3 types of weapon (the foil, the sabre, and the épée, each contested with different rules) and who are protected by specific fencing clothing, mask, gloves, and plastrons. Fencing is usually practiced indoors and requires skill, technique, and tactical excellence for success. The competition platform measures 14 m in length with a width of between 1.5 and 2 m. A judge presides over the bout with the aid of an electrical scoring apparatus connected to the target of the fencer (Roi and Bianchedi 2008). The International Federation of Fencing (Federation Internationale D’Escrime) claims 149 member countries worldwide. For instance, there are about 80 000, 60 000, 30 000, and 16 000 active
athletes in France, Germany, the United States, and Italy, respectively. A fencing international tournament may last between 9 and 11 h. Bouts, during which each athlete is engaged in fighting, represent only about 18% of the total tournament time and, in this period, the effective fight time is between 17 and 48 min. Therefore, the length of dynamic phases is unpredictable, but is usually of short duration. Indeed, it has been reported that the duration of every action may be very short and intensive (less than 1 s) or it may last more than 60 s. Bouts are characterized by submaximal intensity preparatory movements, followed by intensive movements of short duration with the aim to touch the opponent (Roi and Bianchedi 2008; Roi and Pittaluga 1997). Taking into consideration these facts, energy requirements in fencing competitions
Received 26 May 2013. Accepted 16 September 2013. R. Milia, S. Roberto, M. Pinna, G. Palazzolo, I. Sanna, A. Concu, and A. Crisafulli. Department of Medical Sciences, Sports Physiology Laboratory, University of Cagliari (Italy), Via Porcell 4, 09124 Cagliari, Italy. M. Omeri and S. Piredda. National Italian Fencing Federation, Rome, Italy. G. Migliaccio. Regional School of Sport of Sardinia, Italian Olympic Committee, Cagliari, Italy. Corresponding author: Antonio Crisafulli (e-mail: [email protected]). Appl. Physiol. Nutr. Metab. 39: 324–328 (2014) dx.doi.org/10.1139/apnm-2013-0221
Published at www.nrcresearchpress.com/apnm on 26 September 2013.
Appl. Physiol. Nutr. Metab. Downloaded from www.nrcresearchpress.com by Calif Dig Lib - Irvine on 12/17/14 For personal use only.
Milia et al.
can vary unpredictably, depending on the duration of both the preparatory and intensive phases. Therefore, from a physiological point of view, fencing appears to be an intermittent physically demanding sport, with short phases of maximal or supramaximal intensity spaced by recoveries. Hence, it is likely that both aerobic and anaerobic energy systems are recruited during a match. To obtain an understanding of the physiological capacities underlying fencing performance it would be useful to know the energetic demand during a real fight. However, to the best of our knowledge, the energy requirement during a real fencing competition has never been studied. This information would provide benchmarks for the monitoring athletes’ training. This investigation was devised to study energetic demand during a fencing competition and to test the hypothesis that fencing is an activity that recruits both aerobic and anaerobic energy systems. In particular, we were interested in measuring aerobic energy expenditure during a competition and in discovering whether, and to what extent, anaerobic glycolysis is recruited. This information would allow coaches to design specific training programs able to induce the specific adaptations required by fencing.
Materials and methods Subjects Fifteen fencers (2 female, 13 male) that regularly participated in competitions over the last 4 years were enrolled. Mean ± SD of age, height, and body mass were 21.4 ± 6.9 years, 176.7 ± 10.6 cm, and 68.5 ± 12.9 kg, respectively. All subjects were skilled athletes who trained for 10–12 h a week and had been involved in regular training programs for at least 5 years. In the last year, 6 of them had participated in international competitions, while the other 4 in national tournaments. Thus, our group is representative of midupper level athlete fencers. The study was performed in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by our local ethics committee (University of Cagliari). Written informed consent was obtained from all participants. Experimental protocol Preliminary test All athletes underwent a preliminary incremental exercise test on a motorized treadmill (Runrace, Technogym, Forlì, Italy) to assess their anaerobic threshold (AT) and maximal oxygen uptake (V˙O2max). The test consisted of linear increases of running velocity of 1 km·h−1 every minute, starting at 8 km·h−1, until exhaustion, which was considered as the exercise level at which the subject was unable to maintain the running speed, i.e., muscular fatigue. The treadmill slope was set at 1% to compensate for the lack of air friction (Jones and Doust 1996). Achievement of V˙O2max was considered as the attainment of at least 2 of the following criteria: (i) a plateau in oxygen uptake (V˙O2) despite increasing speed (
ARTICLE
Appl. Physiol. Nutr. Metab. Downloaded from www.nrcresearchpress.com by Calif Dig Lib - Irvine on 12/17/14 For personal use only.
Physiological responses and energy expenditure during competitive fencing Raffaele Milia, Silvana Roberto, Marco Pinna, Girolamo Palazzolo, Irene Sanna, Massimo Omeri, Simone Piredda, Gianmario Migliaccio, Alberto Concu, and Antonio Crisafulli
Abstract: Fencing is an Olympic sport in which athletes fight one against one using bladed weapons. Contests consist of three 3-min bouts, with rest intervals of 1 min between them. No studies investigating oxygen uptake and energetic demand during fencing competitions exist, thus energetic expenditure and demand in this sport remain speculative. The aim of this study was to understand the physiological capacities underlying fencing performance. Aerobic energy expenditure and the recruitment of lactic anaerobic metabolism were determined in 15 athletes (2 females and 13 males) during a simulation of fencing by using a portable gas analyzer (MedGraphics VO2000), which was able to provide data on oxygen uptake, carbon dioxide production and heart rate. Blood lactate was assessed by means of a portable lactate analyzer. Average group energetic expenditure during the simulation was (mean ± SD) 10.24 ± 0.65 kcal·min−1, corresponding to 8.6 ± 0.54 METs. Oxygen uptakeand heart rate were always below the level of anaerobic threshold previously assessed during the preliminary incremental test, while blood lactate reached its maximum value of 6.9 ± 2.1 mmol·L−1 during the final recovery minute between rounds. Present data suggest that physical demand in fencing is moderate for skilled fencers and that both aerobic energy metabolism and anaerobic lactic energy sources are moderately recruited. This should be considered by coaches when preparing training programs for athletes. Key words: oxygen uptake, carbon dioxide production, blood lactate, heart rate, anaerobic threshold. Résumé : L’escrime est un sport olympique dans lequel les athlètes s’affrontent avec des armes blanches. Une épreuve comprend 3 assauts de 3 minutes chacun avec 1 minute de repos entre les assauts. Il n’y a pas d’études traitant de la consommation d’oxygène et des exigences énergétiques durant les compétitions d’escrime; la dépense énergétique et les exigences énergétiques de ce sport ne sont encore que spéculatives. Cette étude se propose d’évaluer les capacités physiologiques durant une performance a` l’escrime. On évalue la dépense d’énergie en aérobiose et la sollicitation du métabolisme anaérobie lactique chez 15 athlètes (2 femmes, 13 hommes) au cours d’une simulation a` l’escrime en utilisant un analyseur de gaz portatif (MedGraphics VO2000) pour déterminer la consommation d’oxygène, la production de gaz carbonique et le rythme cardiaque. On évalue la concentration sanguine de lactate au moyen d’un analyseur de lactate portatif. La dépense énergétique moyenne au cours de la simulation est (moyenne ± écart-type) de 10,24 ± 0,65 kcal·min−1, soit 8,6 ± 0,54 METs. La consommation d’oxygène et le rythme cardiaque se situent toujours sous le seuil anaérobie évalué précédemment au cours d’un test d’effort progressif; la sanguine de lactate atteint une valeur maximale de 6,9 ± 2,1 mmol·L−1 durant la dernière minute de récupération entre les épreuves. D’après les résultats de cette étude, les exigences énergétiques de l’escrime sont modérées pour des escrimeurs compétents et les deux sources d’énergie, aérobie et anaérobie lactique, sont sollicitées modérément. Les entraîneurs devraient prendre en compte ces données au moment de préparer des programmes d’entraînement pour les athlètes. [Traduit par la Rédaction] Mots-clés : consommation d’oxygène, production de gaz carbonique, lactate sanguin, rythme cardiaque, seuil anaérobie.
Introduction Fencing is a combat sport between 2 athletes who fence each other using 1 of 3 types of weapon (the foil, the sabre, and the épée, each contested with different rules) and who are protected by specific fencing clothing, mask, gloves, and plastrons. Fencing is usually practiced indoors and requires skill, technique, and tactical excellence for success. The competition platform measures 14 m in length with a width of between 1.5 and 2 m. A judge presides over the bout with the aid of an electrical scoring apparatus connected to the target of the fencer (Roi and Bianchedi 2008). The International Federation of Fencing (Federation Internationale D’Escrime) claims 149 member countries worldwide. For instance, there are about 80 000, 60 000, 30 000, and 16 000 active
athletes in France, Germany, the United States, and Italy, respectively. A fencing international tournament may last between 9 and 11 h. Bouts, during which each athlete is engaged in fighting, represent only about 18% of the total tournament time and, in this period, the effective fight time is between 17 and 48 min. Therefore, the length of dynamic phases is unpredictable, but is usually of short duration. Indeed, it has been reported that the duration of every action may be very short and intensive (less than 1 s) or it may last more than 60 s. Bouts are characterized by submaximal intensity preparatory movements, followed by intensive movements of short duration with the aim to touch the opponent (Roi and Bianchedi 2008; Roi and Pittaluga 1997). Taking into consideration these facts, energy requirements in fencing competitions
Received 26 May 2013. Accepted 16 September 2013. R. Milia, S. Roberto, M. Pinna, G. Palazzolo, I. Sanna, A. Concu, and A. Crisafulli. Department of Medical Sciences, Sports Physiology Laboratory, University of Cagliari (Italy), Via Porcell 4, 09124 Cagliari, Italy. M. Omeri and S. Piredda. National Italian Fencing Federation, Rome, Italy. G. Migliaccio. Regional School of Sport of Sardinia, Italian Olympic Committee, Cagliari, Italy. Corresponding author: Antonio Crisafulli (e-mail: [email protected]). Appl. Physiol. Nutr. Metab. 39: 324–328 (2014) dx.doi.org/10.1139/apnm-2013-0221
Published at www.nrcresearchpress.com/apnm on 26 September 2013.
Appl. Physiol. Nutr. Metab. Downloaded from www.nrcresearchpress.com by Calif Dig Lib - Irvine on 12/17/14 For personal use only.
Milia et al.
can vary unpredictably, depending on the duration of both the preparatory and intensive phases. Therefore, from a physiological point of view, fencing appears to be an intermittent physically demanding sport, with short phases of maximal or supramaximal intensity spaced by recoveries. Hence, it is likely that both aerobic and anaerobic energy systems are recruited during a match. To obtain an understanding of the physiological capacities underlying fencing performance it would be useful to know the energetic demand during a real fight. However, to the best of our knowledge, the energy requirement during a real fencing competition has never been studied. This information would provide benchmarks for the monitoring athletes’ training. This investigation was devised to study energetic demand during a fencing competition and to test the hypothesis that fencing is an activity that recruits both aerobic and anaerobic energy systems. In particular, we were interested in measuring aerobic energy expenditure during a competition and in discovering whether, and to what extent, anaerobic glycolysis is recruited. This information would allow coaches to design specific training programs able to induce the specific adaptations required by fencing.
Materials and methods Subjects Fifteen fencers (2 female, 13 male) that regularly participated in competitions over the last 4 years were enrolled. Mean ± SD of age, height, and body mass were 21.4 ± 6.9 years, 176.7 ± 10.6 cm, and 68.5 ± 12.9 kg, respectively. All subjects were skilled athletes who trained for 10–12 h a week and had been involved in regular training programs for at least 5 years. In the last year, 6 of them had participated in international competitions, while the other 4 in national tournaments. Thus, our group is representative of midupper level athlete fencers. The study was performed in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by our local ethics committee (University of Cagliari). Written informed consent was obtained from all participants. Experimental protocol Preliminary test All athletes underwent a preliminary incremental exercise test on a motorized treadmill (Runrace, Technogym, Forlì, Italy) to assess their anaerobic threshold (AT) and maximal oxygen uptake (V˙O2max). The test consisted of linear increases of running velocity of 1 km·h−1 every minute, starting at 8 km·h−1, until exhaustion, which was considered as the exercise level at which the subject was unable to maintain the running speed, i.e., muscular fatigue. The treadmill slope was set at 1% to compensate for the lack of air friction (Jones and Doust 1996). Achievement of V˙O2max was considered as the attainment of at least 2 of the following criteria: (i) a plateau in oxygen uptake (V˙O2) despite increasing speed (
