ACUTE REDUCTION IN MAXIMAL OXYGEN-UPTAKE AFTER LONG-DISTANCE RUNNING

Nine male marathon runners, 24 to 39 years of age, were studied during steady state and maximal graded treadmill exercise under control conditions (C) and immediately after a paced outdoor 21.1-km run averaging 89.5 min (E). The half-marathon run and both treadmill trials were performed at 239 +/- 33 m/min. Oxygen uptake (VO2), respiratory exchange ratio (RER), heart rate (HR), plasma lactate concentration (PLa), and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) were measured in the steady state at 0% grade and at the fatigue end point. Compared to C, mean values in E were significantly lower (p < 0.05) for time to exhaustion (6.0 vs 4.1 min), VO2max (60.0 vs 56.3 ml/kg/min), peak RER (1.18 vs 1.06), and PLa (9.7 vs 7.8 mM/L), whereas maximal HR (184 vs 184 b/min) and peak RPE (19.6 vs 19.9) were not significantly different between trials. Submaximal VO2 during steady-state runs was similar between C and E (44.4 vs 45.0 ml/kg/min; p = NS). Since the attainable VO2max decreased after E, the percentage of VO2max utilized during steady-state runs was higher, averaging 74% in C and 80% in E (p < 0.05). In the steady state during E, HR (153 vs 161 b/min) and RPE (13.2 vs 14.8) were higher (p < 0.05), and the increase in PLa from rest (2.7 vs 1.9 mM/L) was lower (p < 0.05). Submaximal HR during graded exercise in E was 7 to 8 b/min higher (p < 0.05) at a given VO2, indicating reduced heart rate reserve. The results show that the peak attainable VO2max acutely decreased after the 21.1-km run. Thus the fraction of VO2max utilized and the RPE may increase during a long-distance run even when the steady-state VO2 is unchanged.