Running performance in the heat is improved by similar magnitude with pre-exercise cold-water immersion and mid-exercise facial water spray
Stevens CJ, Kittel A, Sculley DV, Callister R, Taylor L, Dascombe BJ
Journal of sports sciences · 37 citations
Review labels
Neutral facts our review recorded about how this study was done. They describe method, never whether we like the result.
How it was studied
- Design
- Randomized controlled trial (indexed by PubMed)
- Studied in
- People
- Main outcome
- Health markers and function
Who paid for it
- Funding
- Funding not disclosed
Publication
- Published
- 2016-06-08 · J Sports Sci · vol. 35 · issue 8 · pp. 798–805
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis
- Cited
- 60 citations · more than 92% of similar papers · 3.4× the field average
- Impact
- Top 10% most cited in its field
- References
- 42 works
- Access
- Open access (repository copy) · CC-BY
- Research areas
- Thermoregulation and physiological responses · Exercise and Physiological Responses · Sports Performance and Training
- Keywords
- Heart rate, Medicine, Treadmill, Core temperature, Thermoregulation, Time trial, Blood lactate, Cardiorespiratory fitness, Hyperthermia, Immersion (mathematics), Physical therapy, Animal science, Anesthesia, Internal medicine, Blood pressure, Biology, Mathematics
- MeSH
- face, muscle, skeletal, humans, water, cross-over studies, immersion, perception, body temperature regulation, running, adult, male, athletic performance, cold temperature, hot temperature
6 authors
From AU, QA
- Christopher John Stevens · correspondingHunter Water; Southern Cross University
- Aden B. KittelHunter Water
- Dean SculleyUniversity of Newcastle Australia
- Robin CallisterUniversity of Newcastle Australia
- Lee K. TaylorQatar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital
- Ben J. DascombeLa Trobe University; Hunter Water
Abstract
This investigation compared the effects of external pre-cooling and mid-exercise cooling methods on running time trial performance and associated physiological responses. Nine trained male runners completed familiarisation and three randomised 5 km running time trials on a non-motorised treadmill in the heat (33°C). The trials included pre-cooling by cold-water immersion (CWI), mid-exercise cooling by intermittent facial water spray (SPRAY), and a control of no cooling (CON). Temperature, cardiorespiratory, muscular activation, and perceptual responses were measured as well as blood concentrations of lactate and prolactin. Performance time was significantly faster with CWI (24.5 ± 2.8 min; P = 0.01) and SPRAY (24.6 ± 3.3 min; P = 0.01) compared to CON (25.2 ± 3.2 min). Both cooling strategies significantly (P < 0.05) reduced forehead temperatures and thermal sensation, and increased muscle activation. Only pre-cooling significantly lowered rectal temperature both pre-exercise (by 0.5 ± 0.3°C; P < 0.01) and throughout exercise, and reduced sweat rate (P < 0.05). Both cooling strategies improved performance by a similar magnitude, and are ergogenic for athletes. The observed physiological changes suggest some involvement of central and psychophysiological mechanisms of performance improvement.
Abstract via Europe PMC. Copyright remains with the authors or publisher.
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