Abstract
The aim of the study was to characterize aerobic responses to high intensity intermittent (HIIE) and continuous (CE) exercises in prepubertal children. 26 children aged 8 to 11-year-old took part in a preliminary session to determine peakVO2 and Maximal Aerobic Velocity (MAV). In 5 subsequent experimental visits, the participants completed 2 CE and 3 HIIE sessions in a randomized order. HIIE consisted of short intermittent 10-s and 20-s running bouts at 100 to 130% MAV, interspersed with recovery periods of equal duration (S-HIIE1 and S-HIIE2 respectively) and 5-s of sprinting and jumping at maximal intensity with 15-s recovery periods (S-HIIE3). CE consisted of 2 10-min running periods at 80% and 85% MAV with a 5-min recovery period. CE protocols elicited higher average VO2 and exercise time spent above 95% of peakVO2 compared to the HIIE protocols. S-HIIE 1 and S-HIIE 2 elicited similar average VO2 response, higher than S-HIIE 3. Our study shows that CE activated the aerobic system to a greater extent than S-HIIE in prepubertal children, as reflected by the time above 95% of peakVO2 during exercise. However, isotime S-HIIE protocols comprising 10-s or 20-s exercise bouts at an intensity above MAV result in similar times above 95% of peakVO2 during exercise.
Key words
oxygen uptake - exercise modalities - maximal aerobic velocity - children
