Craig Robertson

Purpose This study aimed to determine whether a series of repeated maximal voluntary apnoeas is effective in improving subsequent time trial performance in competitive level track and field athletes. Methods Seventeen competitive runners volunteered for this study and based on their preferred competitive distance they were placed either in the 200 m (5 male, 4 female) or 1000 m group (3 male, 5 female). On two separate occasions (≤ 7 days apart), the participants performed a running time-trial that was preceded either by: (i) a standardised warm up (WO) or (ii) a standardised warm up succeeded by five repeated maximal dry static apnoeas (WA). Splenic volume, haematology and cardiovascular parameters were monitor at rest, before and after each time-trial. Results WA resulted in a significantly faster performance (27.51 ± 3.49 s; P = 0.009) compared with WO (27.96 ± 3.34 s) in the 200 m group, whereas no differences were observed in the 1000 m group (WA, 211.10 ± 26.18 s; WO, 215.82 ± 25.13 s, P = 0.120). No differences were noted in splenic volume between WO and WA in either group (P ≥ 0.081). Haemoglobin was significantly elevated after breath-holding in the 200 m (+ 7 g/dL, P = 0.041) but not 1000 m group. Conclusion This study demonstrates that five repeated maximal apnoeas are capable of significantly improving a 200 m but not a 1000 m time-trial performance in competitive track and field athletes.

This study aimed to establish whether a series of 3 apneas before a 400-m freestyle time-trial affected swimming performance when compared with and combined with a warm-up. Nine (6 males and 3 females) regional to national standard swimmers completed four 400-m freestyle time-trials in 4 randomized conditions: without warm-up or apneas (CON), warm-up only (WU), apneas only (AP), and warm-up and apneas (WUAP). Time-trial performance was significantly improved after WUAP (275.79 ± 12.88 seconds) compared with CON (278.66 ± 13.31 seconds, p = 0.035) and AP (278.64 ± 4.10 seconds, p = 0.015). However, there were no significant differences between the WU (276.01 ± 13.52 seconds, p > 0.05) and other interventions. Spleen volume compared with baseline was significantly reduced after the apneas by a maximum of ∼45% in the WUAP and by ∼20% in WU. This study showed that the combination of a warm-up with apneas could significantly improve 400-m freestyle swim performance compared with a control and apnea intervention. Further investigation into whether long-term apnea training can enhance this response is justified.