Effect of high-intensity-interval-training (HIT) on maximal aerobic power and ventilatory threshold in older adults

We tested if 8 weeks of HIT can induce a significant increase of V’O2max and of the V’O2 corresponding to gas exchange threshold (GET) and to respiratory compensation point (RCP) in older men. To this aim, we measured in 12 healthy male volunteers (68.7±3.9 yy; 79.0±10.8 kg, 171.4±5.4 cm) V’O2max, GET and RCP before (PRE) and after (POST) 8 weeks of HIT performed 3 times a week cycling 7 times for 2 minutes, interspersed with 2 minutes of recovery, at about 85-90 % of V’O2max. GET was measured during an incremental test up to the limit of individual tolerance. V’O2max was measured during a subsequent constant–workload test performed at 105 % the maximal work-rate achieved on the ramp test. Absolute and relative V’O2max significantly increased by 5.4 % (PRE: 2.34±0.32 l/min; POST: 2.48±0.29 l/min, p < 0.05, effect size (ES) = 0.7) and 11.7 % (PRE: 28.8±5.66 ml/min kg; POST: 32.6±5.66 ml/min kg, p < 0.05, ES = 0.8), respectively. V’O2 at GET and RCP increased by 7.2% (PRE: 17.0±2.86 ml/min kg; POST: 18.3±3.81 ml/min kg, p < 0.05, ES = 0.7) and 15.4 % (PRE: 22.8±3.75 ml/min kg; POST: 27.0±5.30 ml/min kg, p < 0.05, ES = 1.3), respectively. Moreover, RCP increased from 76.5 % of V’O2max to 82.9 % of V’O2max (p <0.05, ES = 0.7). It is concluded that 8 weeks of HIT are able to induce significant increases of V’O2max and of exercise resistance in older adults.