Individualized Training to Improve Aerobic Capacity and 2,000 m Rowing Performance in Youth Rowers

Официальное название

Effects of Ventilatory Threshold-Based Individualized Training on Aerobic Capacity and 2,000 m Rowing Performance in Youth Rowers From Valdivia: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Обзор

The goal of this randomized clinical trial is to learn whether an individualized rowing training program based on ventilatory thresholds can improve aerobic capacity and 2,000 m rowing performance in youth rowers from Valdivia, Chile. The study will include male and female rowers aged 14 to 18 years who train regularly at Club de Remeros Arturo Prat. The main questions it aims to answer are: Does ventilatory threshold-based individualized training improve maximal oxygen uptake compared with the usual club training program? Does ventilatory threshold-based individualized training improve 2,000 m rowing ergometer performance compared with the usual club training program? Researchers will compare an individualized training group with a usual training group to see if prescribing exercise intensity based on each rower's ventilatory thresholds produces greater improvements in aerobic capacity, rowing performance, and related physiological measures. Participants will: Complete baseline and post-intervention assessments, including a cardiopulmonary exercise test on a rowing ergometer, blood lactate measurements during an incremental rowing test, a 2,000 m rowing ergometer test, body composition assessment, and respiratory muscle strength testing. Be randomly assigned to either an individualized training group or a usual training group. Complete a 12-week rowing training program. Use heart rate monitors during study training sessions so that training intensity, adherence, and safety can be monitored. Report any discomfort, injuries, or adverse events during the study. The individualized training group will train according to heart rate zones derived from each participant's ventilatory thresholds measured at baseline. The usual training group will continue the club's regular training program. The study will also explore individual variability in training response and the proportion of participants who respond or do not respond to each training approach.

Подробное описание

This study will be conducted in youth rowers from Club de Remeros Arturo Prat in Valdivia, Chile. Rowing performance over 2,000 m depends on aerobic capacity, submaximal physiological markers, and the ability to sustain high power output during a race-specific effort. In many youth rowing settings, training intensity is commonly prescribed using coach experience, stroke rate, perceived exertion, heart rate responses, and field-based performance tests. However, individualized physiological markers, such as the first and second ventilatory thresholds, may provide a more precise approach to exercise intensity prescription.

This randomized controlled trial will compare a 12-week individualized rowing training program based on ventilatory thresholds with the usual training program used by the club. Participants will be male and female rowers aged 14 to 18 years who train regularly under technical supervision. After baseline assessments, participants will be randomly assigned to either an individualized training group or a usual training group.

Both groups will maintain a comparable overall rowing training volume. The main difference between groups will be how training intensity is prescribed and monitored. In the individualized training group, heart rate training zones will be derived from each participant's baseline ventilatory thresholds obtained during cardiopulmonary exercise testing on a rowing ergometer. In the usual training group, participants will continue the regular club training program, guided by the coaching staff according to usual practice.

Participants will be assessed before and after the intervention. The primary outcomes will be maximal oxygen uptake and 2,000 m rowing ergometer performance. Secondary outcomes will include power output associated with ventilatory thresholds, blood lactate response during incremental exercise, body composition, maximal inspiratory and expiratory pressures, training adherence, training load, and adverse events. The study will also explore the magnitude of training effects, interindividual variability in response, and the proportion of responders and non-responders in each group.

The purpose of this trial is to determine whether ventilatory threshold-based individualized training produces greater physiological and performance adaptations than usual training in youth rowers under real-world club training conditions.

Вмешательства

• Поведенческое Individualized Rowing Training
  A 12-week rowing training program in which exercise intensity is individualized using heart rate zones derived from the first and second ventilatory thresholds measured at baseline during cardiopulmonary exercise testing on a rowing ergometer. Three training zones will be defined for each participant: below the first ventilatory threshold, between the first and second ventilatory thresholds, and above the second ventilatory threshold. Coaches will adjust stroke rate, power output, effort duratio
• Поведенческое Usual Rowing Training
  A 12-week usual rowing training program prescribed and supervised by the club coaching staff according to standard practice. Training intensity will be guided by usual coaching criteria, including stroke rate, perceived exertion, heart rate responses, training volume, and field-based performance references. Heart rate monitors will be used during study training sessions to document training load, intensity, and adherence.

Первичные конечные точки

• Change in Maximal Oxygen Uptake [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in 2,000 m Rowing Ergometer Performance Time [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]

Вторичные конечные точки (12)

• Change in Peak Power Output [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in Power Output at the First Ventilatory Threshold [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in Power Output at the Second Ventilatory Threshold [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in Oxygen Uptake at the First Ventilatory Threshold [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in Oxygen Uptake at the Second Ventilatory Threshold [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in Power Output at 4 mmol/L Blood Lactate Concentration [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in Body Fat Percentage [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in Body Fat mass [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in Skeletal Muscle Mass [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in Fat-Free Mass [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in Maximal Inspiratory Pressure [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]
• Change in Maximal Expiratory Pressure [Срок оценки: Baseline and 12 weeks]

Критерии участия

Критерии включения

• Active membership in Club de Remeros Arturo Prat of Valdivia.
• Age between 14 and 18 years.
• Systematic rowing training of at least 3 sessions per week under technical supervision.
• Participation in federated competitions or internal selection processes.
• Medical clearance for intense physical exercise issued by a treating physician or competent institution, such as a pre-participation medical evaluation.

Критерии исключения

• History of uncontrolled cardiovascular, respiratory, or metabolic disease that contraindicates intense exercise, such as structural heart disease, clinically significant arrhythmias, or uncontrolled asthma.
• Acute or chronic musculoskeletal injury that prevents completion of the training program or study assessments.
• Use of medications that may substantially modify the physiological response to exercise, such as beta-blockers, or declared history of doping.
• Acute illness at the time of assessment, including fever, infection, or respiratory symptoms.
• Cognitive, language, or behavioral difficulties that prevent understanding instructions or complying with the study protocol.
• Simultaneous participation in another exercise intervention study.

Критерии приведены из реестра в оригинале (на английском). Окончательную оценку соответствия проводит исследовательский центр.

Здоровые добровольцы: Да

Дизайн исследования

Распределение

Рандомизированное

Модель

Параллельные группы

Маскирование

Простое слепое

Основная цель

Другое

Центры проведения

Чили · 1 центр

• Universidad San Sebastián, Valdivia Campus — Valdivia

Публикации

• Huerta Ojeda A, Riquelme Guerra M. Six-minute rowing test: a practical tool for training prescription, from ventilatory thresholds and power outputs, in amateur male rowers. PeerJ. 2023 Sep 29;11:e16160. doi: 10.7717/peerj.16160. eCollection 2023. PMID 37790629
• Diry A, Ratel S, Nevill A, Maciejewski H. What is the physiological impact of reducing the 2,000 m Olympic distance in rowing to 1,500 m and 1,000 m for French young competitive rowers? Insights from the energy system contribution. Front Physiol. 2022 Jul 18;13:896975. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2022.896975. eCollection 2022. PMID 35923235
• Hopkins WG. Individual responses made easy. J Appl Physiol (1985). 2015 Jun 15;118(12):1444-6. doi: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00098.2015. Epub 2015 Feb 12. No abstract available. PMID 25678695
• Hopkins WG, Marshall SW, Batterham AM, Hanin J. Progressive statistics for studies in sports medicine and exercise science. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009 Jan;41(1):3-13. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0b013e31818cb278. PMID 19092709
• Faude O, Kindermann W, Meyer T. Lactate threshold concepts: how valid are they? Sports Med. 2009;39(6):469-90. doi: 10.2165/00007256-200939060-00003. PMID 19453206
• Mann TN, Lamberts RP, Lambert MI. High responders and low responders: factors associated with individual variation in response to standardized training. Sports Med. 2014 Aug;44(8):1113-24. doi: 10.1007/s40279-014-0197-3. PMID 24807838
• Seiler S. What is best practice for training intensity and duration distribution in endurance athletes? Int J Sports Physiol Perform. 2010 Sep;5(3):276-91. doi: 10.1123/ijspp.5.3.276. PMID 20861519

Идентификаторы

NCT: NCT07602244 · 292630042026

Первоисточники (государственные реестры)

• ClinicalTrials.gov (NIH, США)

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