ACE 6th Edition Chapter 8: Cardiorespiratory Training: Physiology, Assessments, and Programming

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Chapter Goals:

• Find the acute and chronic physiological responses to cardiorespiratory training.
• Know the key considerations we look at for the environment and cardiorespiratory training.
• Be able to explain the procedures in the assessment of the ventilatory threshold. 
• Look into the results of the different cardio assessments and then apply them to programming for cardio training.
• Find the considerations we take into account for programming and limiting sedentary time. 
• Be able to list the three phases of the ACE IFT Model for Cardiorespiratory Training.
• Make a cardio training program that is personalized for clients and ranges from physically inactive people to endurance athletes using the assessment and programming tools from each phase of the ACE IFT Model. 

Introduction

Human beings are designed for movement. We move to secure food, escape from danger, attract partners and do many other daily activities that allow us as a species to thrive. 

Since we need to move for us to survive, the organ systems involved in energy metabolism will function the best when they are subject to physical challenges.

Actual physical activity will lead the body to improve its work capacity. 

People need to make time and structure their days in ways that will intentionally increase their bodies’ physical capacity. 

Anatomical Systems

Personal trainers need to have a solid anatomy and physiology knowledge base involving cardiorespiratory training. We also refer to cardiorespiratory training as aerobic training or simply cardio. 

We must know the most acute and chronic physiological effects that occur in the body when we subject ourselves to this training style. 

Cardiovascular System

The cardiovascular, or the circulatory system as it is also called, is a closed-circuit system comprising the heart, blood vessels, and blood within them. 

Blood travels a circular route through the heart and into the arteries, following to the capillaries and into the veins, and then all of this comes back to the heart to repeat the cycle. 

Along with the respiratory system, the heart and the blood vessels deliver nutrients and oxygen to the body’s tissues while also working to remove waste products like CO2 and metabolic by-products. 

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Blood links the body’s internal environment to the external environment by transporting the materials between the two. 

The categories of blood vessels will be the following:

• Arteries and arterioles will carry the oxygen-rich blood away from the heart.
• Capillaries provide the sites for gas, nutrient, and waste exchange between the vessels and the tissues. 
• Venules and veins work to return the blood back to the heart. 

The heart is the main pump of blood to the body. The organ is located between the lungs and lies just left of the center, behind the sternum. The heart is made up of atria and ventricles, four in total.

The right side of the heart receives the blood that is low in oxygen and then pumps through the lungs to receive the oxygen and goes to the left side of the heart, where the blood is pumped to circulate the rest of the body. 

One cardiac cycle is the period of time from the beginning of one heartbeat to the beginning of the next. 

Respiratory System

The respiratory system is what makes it possible for the body to exchange gases between the external and the internal environment and the tissues. This comprises the nose, nasal cavity, pharynx, larynx, trachea, bronchi, and lungs. 

Air enters through the nostrils and the mouth, and the air is warmed up and passes to the pharynx and then the larynx. We breathe around 5 – 6 liters of air every minute when at rest and then upwards of 30 liters per minute when exercising. From the larynx, the air will go to the trachea and then the bronchi of the lungs. Then it will be exhaled once the exchange has occurred. 

The muscles of inspiration, or the drawing in of air, are the pec minor, scalenes, and sternocleidomastoid. This is when we are exercising. When we are regularly breathing, we use the diaphragm and the external intercostals. 

We use no other assistance when resting for expiration or the expiring of the air out of the body. Still, during exercise, we introduce the use of the abs, internal obliques, serratus posterior, and internal intercostals. 

Physiology of the Cardiorespiratory System

Cardiorespiratory fitness levels are defined as the capacity of the heart and lungs to deliver oxygen to the working muscles during times of exercise. 

We have three basic things that must happen so that we can provide adequate blood and nutrients to the tissues:

• Getting the oxygen to the blood.
• Distributing the blood and delivering this oxygen to the active tissues. 
• And extracting the oxygen from the blood to complete the production of ATP that needs to occur. 

The oxygen carrying capacity of the blood is mainly found by two variables: the ability to ventilate the alveoli in the lungs adequately and the hemoglobin concentration in the blood. 

Hemoglobin is the molecule in the blood that is used to carry oxygen around. 

Cardiac output is the product of the heart rate and the stroke volume, also simply the quantity of blood that is output per heartbeat. 

Physiological Adaptations to Acute and Chronic Cardiorespiratory Exercise

Muscular System

The organ systems that are stressed during physical activity and exercise need specific types of exercise to adapt how they are needed. 

We choose the style of training to match the types of muscle fibers and things we wish to work on. We have endurance training working for the slow twitch muscle fibers and the high intensity training for the fast twitch fibers. 

With training, we see the growth of capillaries around the recruited fibers, which enhances oxygen delivery to them. 

We may see the fast twitch fibers primarily used for the higher intensities, which could enhance the number of anaerobic enzymes present. 

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Cardiovascular System

The heart muscle will hypertrophy when it needs to provide more cardiac output to the muscles. 

The main adaptations that will happen are things such as larger stroke volume since there is no increase in the maximal heart rate of a person. 

Respiratory System

The changes in muscles of the respiratory system changes are less seen when compared to the changes in the heart and the circulatory system. The muscles will change, though, in the slightest to allow for more efficiency. 

The adaptations to the cardiorespiratory system will begin with the first bout of exercise, but they will not be truly measurable for weeks. 

Max oxygen uptake, or the VO2 max, will increase with training, but it will reach a peak and plateau at around the 6 month mark. 

Another significant change is in the body’s ability to store glycogen for use during exercise. 

The main adaptations to exercise training will usually occur during the use of steady state exercise that is done at moderate intensity levels. 

Steady state refers to the intensity of exercise where the physiological and energy demands are both met by the intake and the delivery of oxygen to the systems of the body. 

Much recent research has suggested that you see greater improvements when doing high-intensity interval training. And we see this when we look at VO2 max. 

Environmental Considerations when Exercising

One big condition to be aware of is an exercise done in the heat. This introduces some extra need for hydrating, an increased risk of dehydration, and things like heat stroke. 

So, people must pay attention to the possibility of heat exhaustion, stroke, and dehydration when working out in these conditions. 

Exercising in the cold is a major problem when it comes to dealing with the excessive loss of body heat. This means it could result in hypothermia and even frostbite. These conditions must be watched to ensure they do not happen in the body. 

Some things to remember when we work out in the cold are to wear several layers of clothing, allow for adequate ventilation of sweat, wear still breathable clothing, replace the body fluids lost just like you do in the heat, and monitor your overall body weight well. 

Exercising at high altitudes should be something to be aware of, as the higher the altitude, the less available oxygen is in the air. 

Exercising in air pollution is something to consider, especially for those that work out in cities, as this is where it is higher. 

General Guidelines for Cardiorespiratory Exercise for Health and Fitness

Some specific guidelines for adults between the ages of 18 and 64 are outlined in the 2018 physical activity guidelines for Americans. 

First, any amount of exercise is more desirable when compared to none at all. There should be an effort to sit less throughout the day. 

Second, we should perform 150 – 300 minutes of moderate intensity exercise throughout the week or 75 – 150 minutes of high insanity or vigorous activity per week. You can also perform a combination of these two.

Third, we should participate in muscle strengthening activities involving the major muscle groups at least two days every week. 

Make sure to know the principles of aerobic training when looking at the Frequency, Intensity, Time, Type, Volume, Pattern, and Progression. These are the main variables used for training types. 

We use ventilatory thresholds one and two for different exercise intensities. 

We also break these thresholds down into three different zones of working out. 

Zone 1 reflects low to moderate intensity exercise with the heart rate below ventilatory threshold one. 

Zone 2 is reflective of moderate to vigorous intensity exercise, with the heart rates going from ventilatory threshold one to just below the ventilatory threshold two.

Zone three reflects the vigorous to vigorous exercise with the heart rates at or higher than ventilatory threshold two. 

For progression in cardiorespiratory training, we see the use of a few principles. 

• The principle of overload is first, which states that with the additional stresses put on the organs and the systems in a timely and appropriate way, we will see physiological adaptation and improvements happen. 
• The principle of specificity is next, and this states that for us to achieve the results and adaptations that we desire, we must train the body specifically in that way. 

Assessments for Cardiorespiratory Fitness

The ventilatory threshold assessment is based on the physiological principle of variation. During the submaximal exercise, ventilation increases linearly with oxygen uptake and carbon dioxide production. 

The talk test is one thing we use to determine how hard a client is working. This works by talking and holding a conversation with the person working out and determining when they cannot have a fluid and uninterrupted conversation. When this occurs, we see them entering into the ventilatory threshold 1. This is just a way to determine this. 

Ventilatory threshold 2 assessment involves looking into the onset of blood lactate accumulation. When this point of the blood lactate accumulating faster than the body can buffer and remove it, then we see the ventilatory threshold two starts. 

Components of a Cardiorespiratory Workout Session

We have three basic components of the cardio sessions. These are the warmup, conditioning, and cool down phases. 

The warmup is what begins the session, and this is a period of lighter exercise that is before the phase of conditioning and needs to last for 5 0 10 minutes. This is a period where the goal is to warm the body up and prepare for the exercise session. 

The conditioning phase is the workout phase, where we work on our goals, which is the prime part of the whole workout. This part is planned and uses the steady state or interval training to achieve the goals. 

The last phase is the phase of cooling down. This is like the warmup, but it is in reverse. The goal is to bring the body back down to the state it was in before exercising.