Effects of Heat & Humidity on Aerobic/Anaerobic Exercise Performance

This report summarizes an article published in the Journal of Exercise Science and Fitness, which investigated the effects of different environmental conditions (21°C/20% R.H., 33°C/20% R.H., and 33°C/80% R.H.) on the VO2max and Wingate anaerobic test performance of athletes. The study found that while the core-to-skin temperature gradient influences VO2max, there were no significant differences in VO2max between the hot-dry and hot-wet conditions compared to the control condition. Furthermore, the Wingate anaerobic test showed no significant variations in peak power or blood lactate levels across the different environmental conditions. The article highlights the importance of considering environmental factors when evaluating athletic performance and suggests that increased skin blood flow is associated with higher VO2max levels. The findings contribute to a deeper understanding of how athletes respond to varying heat and humidity levels during exercise. The study also references other studies to support its findings.

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ARTICLE SUMMARY
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ARTICLE SUMMARY
The article on “Effects of heat and different humidity levels on aerobic and anaerobic
exercise performance in athletes” published in the Journal of Exercise Science and Fitness
has aimed to determine the effects of three diverse environmental conditions in athletes of
China. These conditions are related to 21 degree C/20% R.H. (control), 33 degree C/20%
R.H. (hotedry), 33 degree C/80% R.H. (hotewet) on the VO2max and Wingate anaerobic test
performance.
The article comprehensively discusses that while performing exercises in hot
environmental conditions particularly in extensive level of R.H, the core-to-skin temperature
gradient tends to remain small and the essential convective heat transfer necessitates
significant elevation of blood flow (Zhao et al. 2013). By drawing insights from previous
research, a strong correlation has been found between the post-exercise oral-to-skin heat
gradient and the VO2max [mL/ (kg min)] (r= 0.835, p < 0.001). The data collected through
participant observation has offered similar results to recently conducted study which
recommends that the increased core-to-skin heat gradient has a tendency of increasing the
need of skin blood flow (Périard et al. 2015). In addition the participants observed in the
study did not exhibit major variance between the diverse environments during pre-exercise
oral heat as well as skin temperature.
The article offers explicit explanation that such an increase tends to happen with work
pressure and permits a higher rate of causing cardiac output in order to stimulate the muscles
and further increase the level of VO2max. The article by evaluating the Wingate anaerobic test
has found no significant variations during the highest power or with the maximum levels of
blood lactate tested during varied conditions. Zhao et al. (2013) have made good use of other
scholarly investigations and claimed to have found no effect of increased temperature and
humidity on Wingate anaerobic test performance. On the other hand, the findings did not

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ARTICLE SUMMARY
align with the claim made by previous study that hyperthermia tends to decrease power
production with recurrent races (Zhao et al. 2013).
Although, the article claimed the VO2max to be reduced in environmental conditions
such as hot-dry or hot and wet by drawing comparison to control conditions, there has been
found no significant differences between the two types of temperature levels. However, the
article has illustrated that oral-to-skin heat gradients checked after exercise tends to show
similarity with the differences in VO2max in three conditions 21 degree C/20% R.H. (control),
33 degree C/20% R.H. (hotedry), 33 degree C/80% R.H. (hotewet) on the VO2max.

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ARTICLE SUMMARY
References
Périard, J.D., Racinais, S. and Sawka, M.N., 2015. Adaptations and mechanisms of human
heat acclimation: applications for competitive athletes and sports. Scandinavian journal of
medicine & science in sports, 25, pp.20-38.
Zhao, J., Lorenzo, S., An, N., Feng, W., Lai, L. and Cui, S., 2013. Effects of heat and
different humidity levels on aerobic and anaerobic exercise performance in athletes. Journal
of Exercise Science & Fitness, 11(1), pp.35-41.