Introduction: The results of previous studies have indicated that altitude training can improve an athletes` aerobic capacity. The aerobic system supplies about 70%-85% energy over the entire rowing race. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of altitude training on the basic capacity of elite light-weight male rowers. Dependent variables including the haemorheological property indexes, body mass, the result of six-steps testing, and the score from the ergometer testing. Methods The subjects of this study were six (N=6) elite light-weight male rowers from the Chinese national rowing team. Four of those subjects received gold medals in 2006 and 2007 at world cup rowing competitions. The entire training process consisted of 4-weeks of regular training, followed by an 8 week altitude training (2200 m) program, and concluded with another 4-weeks of regular training. The changes in lactate threshold, indexes of Hb and Hct, body mass, and ergo-meter testing performance at the 6000 m altitude level of the six athletes were recorded and analyzed before, during and after the altitude training. Results The index of Hb increased significantly (P<0.05) during the period of altitude training. Hct also increased, but not significantly. The index of body mass changed during altitude training and free-fat mass increased while the fat mass decreased. Compared with the changes before and after altitude training, the lactate threshold decreased significantly during altitude training. The power-heart curve moved insignificantly in the whole process. Compared with the performance before altitude training, the performance of 6000 m ergo-meter was improved significantly (P<0.05), although it decreased sharply during the altitude training. Conclusions Elite rowers have an excellent aerobic system, which enables them to compete at the intensity required for elite level rowing. The results of the present study showed that Hb of elite light-weight male rowers increased, and lactate threshold decreased significantly through altitude training. As a result, the aerobic ability of athletes improved. Such a finding is supported by the result of improved 6000m ergo performance of the athletes. In addition, light-weight male rowers need to control their body weight for optimal performance during competition. The free-fat mass of the rowers increased through altitude training which in turn would lead to improvement in their basic capacity.
© Copyright 2008 2008 International Convention on Science, Education and Medicine in Sport: Proceedings, Vol. III. Published by People´s Sports Publishing House. All rights reserved.