Environmental Influences on Performance

1. Marathon wake organizers should be mindful of put up conditions during the race Discuss the above rehearsal on a scientific marathon footrace is among the nearly physiologic eithery demanding endurance events in the world. Competitive runners typically maintain a dance step corresponding to 70-90% of their maximal aerobic capacity 3,15,20 for to a greater extent than 2 h. At maximal mechanical efficiency, more than 80% of the energy required for this problem is transferred as enkindle to the body core 9.Moreover, the rate of endogenous heat energy production associated with a 2-h 10-min marathon estimated from ordinary heat-balance equations 9 is approximately 1400 kcalh-1. This metabolic heat must be dissipated to the surrounding environment, or body temperature impart rise to physiologically dangerous levels. Lind 13 has demonstrate that core temperature is independent of humour over a temperature range he has termed the prescriptive z unrivaled. It has been demon strated that the breadth of the prescriptive zone progressively narrows as metabolic rate appends.Thus, climate begins to affect physiological responses to exercise at comparatively cooler temperatures during activities that draw out utmost metabolic rate compared with those eliciting low-downer metabolic rates. More youngly, it has been demonstrated that endurance exercise is indeed impaired when exercising in flying versus more temperate laboratory conditions and that air temperatures of approximately 10C attainm optimal for endurance exercise 10. One criticism of these and oppositewise laboratory findings is that typical airflows apply for indoor testing situations are tumefy below those encountered when running or cycling outdoors ver the ground. The lack of allot airflow substantially reduces the combined heat transfer coefficient 9 and may overrating physiological s gearing 2. Few field stu let ons take hold examined the effect of support conditions on endura nce running performance16,17,22. Although it is generally observed that race performances exacerbate as weather warms, in that respect are currently no data quantifying the magnitude of performance reduction. In addition, these studies relied wholly on data from elite male runners thus, the implications for slower competitors or women runners are only speculative.COLD defy BEST FOR MARATHON PERFORMANCE Every runner knows that cool weather is break away than hot weather for marathon performance. solely a new-fashioned study from the U. S. Army search Institute of Environmental Medicine suggests that relatively cold weather is reveal than merely cool weather. Researchers gathered legion(predicate) years worth of results and weather data from six major North Ameri stern marathons and performed stastical analyses to determine the effect of air temperature on finishing quantify among runners at various levels of performance.Specifically, they looked at year-to-year comparati ve finishing times of the top tercet male and female runners at each event, as well as the 25th, 50th, 100th, and 300th finishers. The results showed a clear trend toward faster times at colder temperatures. For example, the finishing times of male races winners were, on average, 1. 7% slower than the product line record when the air temperature was amongst 34 and 50 degrees. The finishing times of the top male runners were 2. 5% slower than the course record, however, when the temperature was between 51 and 59 degrees.And at soaringer temperatures, finishing times fell murder even more dramatically. Runners at all levels were slowed by warmer air, moreover senior higher temperatures had a smaller effect on faster runners. The standard marathon temperature, according to these analyses, was a bone-chilling 41 degrees. Think about that when you mansion house up for your next marathon 2. diverse who collect ornamental tip have to work in a hostile environment. Discuss how th e aqualung apparatus helps these divers to meet the challenge of the deep sea environment. scuba diving is an exciting and first-hand way for scientists to study the subsurface environment.It is one among the most effective ways for executing submerged experiments that require high attribute precise measurements. SCUBA as the name suggests stands for Self Contained Underwater existent Apparatus. It literally means that all divers carry all of required breathing equipments and gases with them. Hence they are subjected to water temperature, pressure, currents, and separate factors revolving oceans infix at the diving depth. The NURP program approximately supports about 10,000 SCUBA Divers for Scientific Research work.NURP provides all the necessary equipments and finances for scientists and technical care to conduct diving operations. They use both open circuit as well as closed circuit breathing apparatus. The difference between them primarily relies upon what happens to the e xhaled gas. In open system the gas is exhaled in to the water. A closed system apparatus has recycling abilities and thus lasts longer underwater as it reduces carbon-dioxide and adds oxygen in a cyclic manner at bottom the container. It reduces the amount of gas required in the container and also allows the diver to uphold streamlined.The breathing gas provided by NURP involves compressed air, NITROX and TRIMIX. NITROX is a composition of northward and oxygen whilst TRIMIX is a composition of oxygen, nitrogen and helium. NITROX is of special interest to NOAA. It was in introduced in late 1970s which allows the divers to stay longer underwater when compared to compressed air alone. Each of these gases is of different properties which enables the diver to dive at maximum depths. 3. The year 1968 marked the emergence of high raising skilled long distance runners from Kenya.Discuss the scientific basis of high peak cookery and how it helps to perform better in long distance even ts. The speculation underlying the belief that spring uping at high altitude merchant ship elevate athletic performance sounds reasonable enough. Work out in an environment that causes the body to produce more oxygen-carrying red blood cells and an jock will be able to perform better than he or she gutter when dressed at a lower elevation. Proponents of this theory geological period to East African runners, who have dominated long-distance events in recent years, as proof that training at high altitudes pays off.But if thats the case, why dont runners from other high altitude countries much(prenominal) as Peru and Mexico perform equally well? And why do legion(predicate) athletes excel in endurance sports despite having never trained at high altitude? High-altitude training has had so much press that trusted athletes feel like theyre at a disadvantage if theyre not doing altitude training, says Andrew Subudhi, a researcher at the Altitude Research Center in Denver and a ssistant professor of biology at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs. Theres a gravid movement for endurance athletes to move to high altitude if theyre up skilful about improving their performance. Into Thin Air But does it really help? answering that question is harder than one might think, despite numerous scientific studies on the consanguinity between altitude and athletic performance. The issue reached prominence at the 1968 summer Olympics in Mexico City (elevation 7,349 feet), when questions arose about the best way to doctor for competing in the thin air, Subudhi says. Thin air is a term used to describe air that contains less oxygen than air at sea level (20. 9% at sea level compared with 15. 3% at higher altitudes).The number of red blood cells found in the body of an endurance athlete who does not perish and train at high altitudes may be insufficient to supply the amount of oxygen mandatory at higher altitudes. To help deal with this problem, athletes m ay sleep with and train at high altitudes several weeks before a competition to increase the number of red blood cells, which are produced in response to greater release of the hormone erythropoietin.More red blood cells allows a persons blood to carry more oxygen, which partly makes up for the shortfall of oxygen in the air. Studies have found that athletes do perform better in competitions held at high altitudes if they live and train at high altitudes prior to competition, Subudhi says, but training at high altitudes does not necessarily help athletes perform better at low altitudes as one might assume. When youre at altitude, you cant train as hard, and when youre not training as hard, youre not acquiring the same training stimulus, he says. doging at altitude doesnt mean youll do well at sea level. Then again, that doesnt mean that you wont, says Jack Daniels, PhD, head distance coach at the Center for High Altitude Training at Northern genus Arizona University.Daniels says the key profit to training at higher than normal altitudes is that it teaches an athlete how to hurt, and learning to tolerate pain can help athletes push themselves harder than they would otherwise. Its good for an athlete to learn to really lay it out there, and its easy to do that in high altitude without working quite as hard, says Daniels, who has coached 31 individual3/22/13 Printer-friendly article page www. motionsports. com/blog/training at altitude. htm 2/3 NCAA national champions in his career. Although there are benefits to training at altitude, Daniels says, the advantages one might gain are unimportant when compared with more mundane factors. No matter where people train, he says, they want roaring housing, healthy food, a friendly atmosphere, good training facilities, desirable weather, and capable medical and therapy attention. In other words, you train best where you are happiest, Daniels says. If you can have that at altitude, thats good, but if you do altitude -type things and dont have those other things, accordingly you are wasting your time. It is very disturbing to me to hear people say, If you dont train at altitude you may as well not spat trying. I think we have all the things an athlete would want right here, but anyone who comes here and is not happy, I encourage to leave. Live High, Train Low Daniels also doesnt believe in another ism that has gained considerable support in recent years from researchers who have analyse the altitude-performance relationship.Known as live high, train low, this philosophy holds that endurance athletes benefit most from living in high-altitude conditions but training at low altitude where they are able to push themselves harder. The term live high, train low came into being in 1996 when researchers James Stray-Gundersen and Benjamin Levine studied the relationship between altitude, training, and performance using three classifys of endurance athletes. One meeting lived and trained in Park C ity, Utah, (elevation 7,000 feet) while another group lived there and trained at a lower altitude.A third group lived and trained in San Diego (elevation 72 feet). After the four-week training period ended, all were tested at a low altitude. They found that the group that lived high but trained low got the best benefit that was measured in 5-kilometer time trials. Subudhi says. The reason for the improved performance among the live-high, train-low group, researchers hypothesized, is that by living in high-altitude conditions, their bodies produced more red blood cells in response to the lower niggardness of oxygen.And because these athletes trained at a lower elevation, they were able to push themselves harder than they would have at higher altitudes, resulting in a higher training stimulus. The results of this and other studies received so much media attention that companies began manufacturing masks, tents, and rooms that would allow athletes to live anywhere in high-altitude co nditions. Devices cost anywhere from hundreds to thousands to tens of thousands of dollars. Some companies convert consummate houses to these conditions, and both Finland and the United States have outfitted dormitories in this way.Manufacturers claim benefits can occur from as little as six to eight hours of exposure. But those claims are not supported by research, Subudhi says, who contends 15 to 16 hours per twenty-four hours exposure is supported by research. Exercise rooms designed to simulate high-altitude conditions can benefit athletes who live at low altitudes and are mean to compete at a high altitude, he says If your competition is at altitude, then you need to train at altitude. Altitude Advantage The only danger associated with the use of such devices is reducing oxygen levels too quickly, and almost everyone will experience more difficulty sleeping, Subudhi says.However, its rare to take in athletes suffering from acute mountain sickness, commonly known as altit ude sickness, or from high-altitude pulmonary or cerebral edema among those who live at an 8,000- to 9,000-foot altitude, he says. Plus, benefits are temporary An athlete who stops living under high-altitude conditions will begin to see a loss in benefits in about two weeks as extra red blood cells die off, he says. Bob Cranny, PT, owner of Altitude Physical Therapy and Sports Medicine in boulder, Colo. , is a big believer in the benefits of training at altitudes of 2,500 feet or greater.He and his wife are both triathletes and marathon runners who moved to Boulder (elevation 5,430 feet) 12 years ago from Long Beach, Calif. , because they believed the higher altitude would enhance their performance. Many athletes in the area follow the live-high, train-low philosophy, although it might more accurately be described as live high, train lower. Thats because many athletes who train in Boulder live at elevations of3/22/13 Printer-friendlyarticlepage www. kmotionsports. com/blog/trainin g at altitude. htm 3/3 round 9,000 feet and expire to Boulders 5,430-foot elevation to train, as opposed to sea level. If you could live at 9,000 feet and train at sea level, that would be even better that would be wonderful, Cranny says. So the answer to the question of whether training at high altitude will enhance an athletes performance is maybe. Training at altitude will help some, while other athletes might benefit best from alternate training methods. I see altitude as a type of training, and if this type suits you then it is good, Daniels says.