Acute cardiovascular response after maximal cycling exercise in endurance- and strength-trained men

Abstract

Background: Post-exercise hypotension is an important regulator of ambulatory blood pressure—an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Although post-exercise hypotension may be associated with aerobic exercise capacity in male athletes, it has not been explored whether muscular strength or strength training affects post-exercise hypotension. To elucidate whether the cardiovascular responses after exercise differ between endurance- and strength-trained men, this study investigated cardiovascular indices (e.g., blood pressure, cardiac output, total peripheral resistance) before and after maximal cycling exercise in male long-distance runners, weightlifters, and sedentary peers. Methods: Ten male intercollegiate long-distance runners, nine weightlifters, and 10 sedentary peers performed maximal incremental cycling. Cardiovascular indices were measured before and at 15, 30, 60, and 90 min after the exercise. Results: The runners had remodeled hearts and higher maximal oxygen uptake, and the weightlifters had a higher resting systolic blood pressure. Blood pressure decreased after exercise in all groups. Although the weightlifters showed higher systolic blood pressure than the sedentary men throughout the experiment, the changes from baseline showed no intergroup differences in blood pressure. Cardiac output increased and total peripheral resistance decreased after exercise relative to baseline in all groups; there were no intergroup differences in changes in these measures. Conclusions: The mode of habitual exercise training may affect post-exercise hypotension similarly in endurance- and strength-trained male athletes in spite of their different cardiovascular adaptations.