The goal of this study is to determine changes in the concentration of cardiac biomarkers in blood in response to a single bout of exercise performed until volitional exhaustion under hypoxic conditions, and in response to endurance and resistance training in athletes in hypoxia. The investigators hypothesize that: (1) adverse changes in the myocardium may occur during exercise in acute normobaric hypoxia, but they are at least partially reversed by adaptive alterations induced by training in hypoxia; (2) this response is identical in athletes with eccentric cardiac hypertrophy and those with concentric cardiac hypertrophy.
The study consists of three stages. Stage 1 (completed) has examine changes in the blood levels of cardiac biomarkers in response to a single bout of exercise performed until volitional exhaustion in normoxia and during different levels of hypoxia (2000, 3000m). This stage has examined men aged 20-40 years involved in competitive cycling and triathlon, and untrained, healthy men.
Stage 2 of the study will examine changes in the blood levels of cardiac biomarkers in cyclists (aged 20-40) in response to a 3-week endurance training in hypoxia and to passive prolonged exposure (11 to 12 hours a day) to a simulated altitude of 3000m. Stage 3 will examine changes in blood levels of cardiac biomarkers in response to a 3-week resistance training in hypoxia (3000m). This stage of the study will involve men aged 20-40 training in strength sports.
The project will help clarify the effects of hypoxia on the physiological state of the heart in athletes with eccentric or concentric cardiac hypertrophy, as well as determine the differences between competitive athletes vs. untrained, healthy men in the response to hypoxia. The findings may be used in planning and controlling the training process in both strength and endurance disciplines. The research to be conducted in the project is basic research, but it may have a certain applicative aspect.