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Mechanics of Breathing pp 11–24Cite as

Work of Breathing During Exercise: Implications for Performance

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Abstract

Sustained high-intensity exercise demands time-dependent increases in ventilation and respiratory muscle work. Exercise-induced diaphragmatic fatigue commonly occurs because of a combination of the amount of diaphragmatic work required to support the exercise hyperpnea plus the increased propensity of the diaphragm for fatigue during exercise when it must compete with the locomotor muscles for the available cardiac output. The need for blood flow to be distributed to locomotor and respiratory muscles during whole-body exercise is a major determinant of diaphragmatic fatigue. Exercise-induced diaphragmatic fatigue does not generally result in an inadequate ventilatory response to exercise. Rather, high levels of respiratory muscle work leading to diaphragmatic fatigue were shown to cause sympathetically mediated vasoconstriction of resting limb vasculature and relieving most of this work of breathing during heavy exercise increased limb blood flow, reduced the severity of limb fatigue, and enhanced endurance exercise performance. Whether specific training of the respiratory muscles is sufficient to prevent or delay the activation of respiratory muscle metaboreflexes and blood flow redistribution during dynamic whole-body exercise remains unresolved.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Sports Medicine and Human Performance, Brunel University, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB8 3PH, UK

    Lee M. Romer PhD

  2. John Rankin Laboratory of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Wisconsin, 1300 University Ave., Room 4245 MSC, Madison, WI, 53706-1532, USA

    Jerome A. Dempsey PhD

Authors
  1. Lee M. Romer PhD
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  2. Jerome A. Dempsey PhD
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Correspondence to Lee M. Romer PhD .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Politecnico di Milano, Milano, Italy

    Andrea Aliverti

  2. Politecnico di Milano, Milano, Italy

    Antonio Pedotti

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Romer, L.M., Dempsey, J.A. (2014). Work of Breathing During Exercise: Implications for Performance. In: Aliverti, A., Pedotti, A. (eds) Mechanics of Breathing. Springer, Milano. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-5647-3_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-5647-3_2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Milano

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