Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Total body skin temperature of runners during treadmill exercise

A pilot study

  • Published:
Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the time evolution of total body skin temperature during running exercise on treadmill. A group of physically active subjects performed two different treadmill exercises, at graded load and at constant load, for a duration of 30 min, in a moderate indoor environment. Thermal maps of the anterior and posterior body regions were gathered, before, during and after the exercise, by means of infrared thermography. Skin temperature of total body was calculated as a combination of individual measurements taken over several body regions. Within the limits due to the relatively small size of the sample group, results typically show a fall in total body skin temperature during the early stages of treadmill exercise. As the exercise progresses, the dynamics of the skin temperature response is affected by the type of exercise, showing a further decrease during the graded load exercise and a slight increase during the constant load exercise. Regionally averaged skin temperatures were found to be lower than total body skin temperature over the most peripheral body regions less involved in running (upper limbs) and comparable with or higher than total body skin temperature over calves and thighs.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Maughan RJ. Temperature regulation during marathon competition. Br J. Sports Med. 1984;18:257–60.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Lim CL, Byrne C, Lee JKW. Human thermoregulation and measurement of body temperature in exercise and clinical settings. Ann Acad Med Singap. 2008;37:347–53.

    Google Scholar 

  3. Cheuvront SN, Haymes EM. Thermoregulation and marathon running. Biological and environmental influences. Sports Med. 2001;31:743–62.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Charkoudian N. Skin blood flow in adult human thermoregulation: how it works, when it does not, and why. Mayo Clin Proc. 2003;78:603–12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Ring EFJ, Ammer K. The technique of infrared imaging in medicine. Thermol Int. 2000;10:7–14.

    Google Scholar 

  6. Lahiri BB, Bagavathiappan S, Jayakumar T, Philip J. Medical applications of infrared thermography: a review. Infrared Phys Technol. 2012;55:221–35.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Fernández-Cuevas I, Bouzas Marins JC, Arnáiz Lastras J, Gómez Carmona PM, Piñonosa Cano S, García-Concepción MA, Sillero-Quintana M. Classification of factors influencing the use of infrared thermography in humans: a review. Infrared Phys Technol. 2015;71:28–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Clark RP, Mullan BJ, Pugh LGCE. Skin temperature during running—a study using infra-red colour thermography. J Physiol. 1977;267:53–62.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Merla A, Mattei PA, Di Donato L, Romani GL. Thermal imaging of cutaneous temperature modifications in runners during graded exercise. Ann Biomed Eng. 2010;38:158–63.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Fernández-Cuevas I, Sillero-Quintana M, García-Concepción MA, Ribot Serrano J, Gómez-Carmona PM, Bouzas Marins JC. Monitoring skin thermal response to training with infrared thermography. New Stud Athl. 2014;29:57–71.

    Google Scholar 

  11. Fernandes AA, Amorim PRS, Brito CJ, Sillero-Quintana M, Marins JCB. Regional skin temperature response to moderate aerobic exercise measured by infrared thermography. Asian J Sports Med. 2016;7(1):e29243.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Akimov EB. Son’kin VD. Skin temperature and lactate threshold during muscle work in athletes. Hum Physiol. 2011;37:621–8.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Cholewka A, Kasprzyk T, Stanek A, Sieroń-Stołtny K, Drzazga Z. May thermal imaging be useful in cyclist endurance tests? J Therm Anal Calorim. 2016;123:1973–9.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Jones AM, Doust JH. A 1% treadmill grade most accurately reflects the energetic cost of outdoor running. J Sports Sci. 1996;14:321–7.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Nes BM, Janszky I, Wisløff U, Støylen A, Karlsen T. Age-predicted maximal heart rate in healthy subjects: the HUNT Fitness Study. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2013;23:697–704.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Tanda G. The use of infrared thermography to detect the skin temperature response to physical activity. J Phys Conf Ser. 2015;655:012062.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Tanda G. Skin temperature measurements by infrared thermography during running exercise. Exp Therm Fluid Sci. 2016;71:103–13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Quesada JIP, Lucas-Cuevas AG, Palmer RS, Pérez-Soriano P, de Anda RMCO. Definition of the thermographic regions of interest in cycling by using a factor analysis. Infrared Phys Technol. 2016;75:180–6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Ammer K. The Glamorgan Protocol for recording and evaluation of thermal images of the human body. Thermol Int. 2008;18:125–44.

    Google Scholar 

  20. Ludwig N, Formenti D, Gargano M, Alberti G. Skin temperature evaluation by infrared thermography: comparison of image analysis methods. Infrared Phys Technol. 2014;62:1–6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Bland JM, Altman DG. A note on the use of the intraclass correlation coefficient in the evaluation of agreement between two methods of measurement. Comput Biol Med. 1990;20:337–40.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Choi JK, Miki K, Sagawa S, Shiraki K. Evaluation of mean skin temperature formulas by infrared thermography. Int J Biometeorol. 1997;41:68–75.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Nakayama T, Ohnuki Y, Niwa K. Fall in skin temperature during exercise. Jpn J Physiol. 1977;27:423–37.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Torii M, Yamasaki M, Sasaki T, Nakayama H. Fall in skin temperature of exercising man. Br J Sports Med. 1992;26:29–32.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Chudecka M, Lubkowska A. Temperature changes of selected body’s surfaces of handball players in the course of training estimated by thermovision, and the study of the impact of physiological and morphological factors on the skin temperature. J Therm Biol. 2010;35:379–85.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. ASHRAE. Thermal comfort. In: Owen MS, editor. ASHRAE handbook—fundamentals (Chapter 9). SI Edition: Atlanta; 2009.

    Google Scholar 

  27. Smith CJ, Havenith G. Body mapping of sweating patterns in male athletes in mild exercise-induced hyperthermia. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2011;111:1391–404.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Zontak A, Sideman S, Verbitsky O, Beyar R. Dynamic thermography: analysis of hand temperature during exercise. Ann Biomed Eng. 1998;26:988–93.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. DIME, Università degli Studi di Genova, Via Montallegro 1, 16145, Genova, Italy

    Giovanni Tanda

Authors
  1. Giovanni Tanda
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Giovanni Tanda.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Tanda, G. Total body skin temperature of runners during treadmill exercise. J Therm Anal Calorim 131, 1967–1977 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-017-6634-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-017-6634-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation