Adaptations to training

What endurance and strength change in the heart, blood, muscle and nervous system.

The outline, topic by topic

Each topic is weighted the way the exam weighs it.

Central adaptations: what is it?
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Changes in heart and blood: stroke volume, plasma volume, cardiac output.
They increase oxygen delivery.
A beginner gains 20 % strength in 4 weeks of weight training without growing. Why?
- Neural adaptations come first
- Type I fibres become IIx
- VO2max rises
- Glycogen stores rise
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Neural adaptations come first
The nervous system learns to recruit better.
Peripheral adaptations: what is it?
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Changes in muscle: mitochondria, oxidative enzymes, capillaries.
They increase oxygen use.
Why are endurance gains lost within weeks of stopping?
- Type I fibres die and do not grow back
- Plasma volume and oxidative enzymes fall fast without stimulus
- The number of muscle fibres falls sharply
- Maximal heart rate rises and limits output
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Plasma volume and oxidative enzymes fall fast without stimulus
That is reversibility.
VO2max gain: what is it?
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Endurance training raises VO2max by about 15 to 20 % in an untrained person.
Genetics sets much of the ceiling.