Summary • Maximal oxygen uptake (V02max) is the most widely studied physiological variable related to endurance performance in youth. It is a trainable trait in both children and adolescents (5-10% improvement) given training of sufficient frequency, intensity and duration. Exercise intensity appears to be the key variable. Nonetheless, there is wide variability in the response to endurance training, which reflects pre-training levels and genotypic factors among others. • It has been recommended a mixture of continuous and interval exercise at 85-90% heart rate maximum for a minimum of 3-4 sessions of 40-60 minutes per week for a minimum of 12 weeks to induce changes in V02max. However, it is also important to consider that blending continuous and interval exercise (and games) is important since endurance training is often made up of continuous long-distance exercises, which can result in boredom in children. • Adequate energy and nutrient intakes and fluid balance should be encouraged given the increased demands of endurance training. Children have similar heat tolerance as adults. Nonetheless, adequate fluid intake should be monitored. • Despite advances in human genetics in the past decade, the identification of superior young endurance athletes by online companies based on genetic testing of one or a few genes that explain a small percent of the variance in endurance capacity traits has major limitations and raises significant ethical concerns. • Given the relatively low percentage of children and adolescents who meet current recommendations of 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per day, there is a major need to encourage regular participation in healthful physical activities that include a major endurance component. • Several thousands of children participate in long distance events every year without medical encounter. However, early specialization in intensive endurance training may contribute to overuse injury, overtraining, burnout, and psycho-social consequences. Children and adolescents should be encouraged to participate in a range of physical activities and social events. • Despite concerns for the physical and psycho-social health of young endurance athletes it has been suggest that if children enjoy the activity and are asymptomatic, there is no reason to preclude them from training for and participating in such events. Furthermore, children who choose on their own accord to participate in marathon training should be allowed to do so, as long as their social, academic, psychological, and physiological development is not disrupted.
© Copyright 2012 Endurance Training - Science and Practice. Veröffentlicht von Inigo Mujika. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.