The Recovery Process 9-17-07

First Test is on October 1st and includes everything covered from the 1st day up to and including 9/17/07. Chapter 3 in the NSCA book is also included.

THE RECOVERY PROCESS
Y axis: VO2
X axis: Time

Graph 1. Pg. 4 of packet

Walking test of 3 mph on a treadmill for 30 min. The vast majority of energy for this activity comes from the Oxidative (oxygen system, aerobic system) System. During the test, the individual’s VO2 was tested (NOT VO2 max, but VO2 sub maximal value) i.e. How much oxygen is being consumed and utilized per minute. Average resting VO2 for most healthy humans is 3.5 ml/kg/min. This is referred to as 1 MET (metabolic equivalence). For example: if someone were to breath at 10 METs their VO2 would be 35 ml/kg/min. The kg in the equation is the individual’s body weight. So total oxygen consumed will be very different for different people but amount of oxygen consumed per kg will stay the same during rest.

1.As soon as the individual gets onto the treadmill their breathing rate will increase rapidly to meet increased oxygen needs in the body as activity goes from rest to exercise pace. This stage is referred to as “Oxygen deficit.” Oxygen deficit is when oxygen requirement is not being met at the beginning of exercise. (see yellow)

2.The breathing level will stop increasing and reach “steady state.” Steady State is when oxygen demands are being met by oxygen uptake. This is the feeling athletes get when they say “I feel like I could go forever.”

3.At this point the individual completely stops activity and returns to rest state. Theoretically, resting VO2 would be 1 MET. In this case (directly following exercise) the VO2 stays elevated.
This is called: EPOC (excessive post exercise oxygen consumption), O2 Debt, or Recovery O2 and is defined as that amount of oxygen uptake after exercise above that normally consumed during rest. (see blue)

There are two stages of Recovery O2/EPOC/O2 Debt for ANY activity:
Oxygen in these stages is used for completely different things to help your body recover after exercise.

1. Fast decrease or the fast component of Recovery O2. Aka Alactacid (without lactate)
In this stage, there is a rapid decrease in breathing rate. (Specific times vary by individual).
a. CP regeneration (re-synthesis) occurs (for anaerobic & aerobic athletes)
b. Myoglobin replenishment occurs.

CP Replenishment: Figure 2.

After ATP has been broken down and the energy released has been used for muscle contraction, CP is broken down for energy to be used to re-synthesis ATP (this is called a coupled reaction because the energy from one reaction is used to drive another). But how do we re-synthesis CP? We need energy. The energy needed is produced using the oxygen we take in during the fast component of recovery.
During the Aerobic System we break down CHO, Lipids, and Proteins in the presence of oxygen into CO2 + H2O + E. The oxygen needed for this system is the oxygen you breathe during recovery. This E CANNOT be used to re-synthesis CP. It is used to re-synthesis ATP. At this point ATP is restoring quickly and begins to surplus. CP begins to deplete so the body then breaks down some of the surplus ATP to re-synthesis CP.

Fast recovery can happen during a workout also. If you are running a long distance and perform a short sprint to catch up to someone then return to your previous pace, fast recovery is occurring to replenish the CP just used.
You can recover 50% of your CP just used within 30 seconds after an exercise.
Take 2-3 minute rest between 1 RM (heavy sets) to get back almost all of your creatine stores. For muscle hypertrophy take 1 min. rest, for strength a 2-3 min. rest, and for endurance under 30 second rest.


Myoglobin Replenishment
Hemoglobin – red blood cell – carries oxygen from the lungs to the muscles and carries iron. It is stored in the circulatory system.
Myoglobin – looks & acts like hemoglobin but is stored in the muscle. It is the muscle’s own personal store of hemoglobin – it attaches to & stores oxygen – it is an emergency store of oxygen for when the muscle needs it most – for a quick start into the Aerobic System (so the muscles don’t have to wait to receive hemoglobin from the circulatory system to start activity).
For every gram of muscle glycogen the muscle stores, it also stores 3g of water.
And for every gram of creatine stored, 2.5g of water is also stored.

2.Slow decrease or the slow component of Recovery O2. Aka Lactacid
a. Breakdown of lactate (and the clearing of H+ ions)
The oxygen taken in helps turn lactate back into pyruvate
Which can then be converted to Acetyl CoA to enter the Kreb’s Cycle.
b. Meet energy demands of increased: ventilation, heart rate (HR), sweating, and higher metabolism.
Metabolism: the sum of every reaction that occurs in the body (takes a lot of energy).
c. Takes longer to recover from intense anaerobic vs. aerobic workout.

Y axis: Blood lactate & H+ ions (mg %)
X axis: Recovery Time in minutes
Figure 3.

In this study, the individuals ran one mile as fast as they could then had their blood drawn as they recovered. After 20 min. of recovery, the individuals who stopped exercising completely got rid of 50% of their blood lactate and H+ ions. The individuals that used exercise recovery (either intermittent or continuous) got rid of much more. Getting rid of lactate and H+ ions sooner especially is important for athletes who plan to continue to workout soon after their previous workout.
Lactate is NOT what makes people sore one to two days after an exercise because it is gone 20min. To a few hours after a workout. Average time to get back to resting levels for athletes using exercise recovery is about 60 min. Average time to get back to resting levels for an athlete using rest recovery (stopping all activity) is about 120 min.

There are 4 things that happen to lactate during recovery
1. It is reconverted to pyruvate
70% of lactate cleared is reused to create ATP (goes through the systems-see packet pg.2)
2. Can be converted from pyruvate to glucose-muscle glycogen
3. Can be converted from pyruvate to liver glycogen
4. Can be converted to some non-essential amino-acids. (Non-essential: your body makes them and you don’t need to get them from your diet).

Recovery of the Most Important Energy Source in the Body (regardless of what activity):
Muscle Glycogen
How efficiently you restore it affects how much you can train.
Muscle Glycogen Recovery after Low Intensity High Duration Exercise
I.e. Aerobic workouts

1. Complete restoration of muscle glycogen requires high CHO diet
This is critical for active people who train day in and day out. What “high CHO” means is relative to every person. (High carb diet for a college student might be 45%; high carb for a vegetarian might be 65% of the diet).
2. Very poor restoration of muscle glycogen if little CHO in recovery diet.
3. Two days requirement for full restoration. Only if you don’t exercise in the interim. (However most athletes never take a full two days off after exercise)
4. Most rapid restoration occurs during the first 10 hours of recovery. You must eat frequently.
5. Two hour window for immediate optimal restoration immediately following your exercise. It doesn’t matter what type of CHO you take in. It could be candy or pasta-your body uses it the same. This does not take into consideration which is the healthy choice.
The most optimal diet combination is a 3:1 ratio of CHO to protein respectively. 3g of Carbs to 1g of protein. This is ideal for the two hour window. Low fat chocolate milk has this ratio. So do legumes-pinto, garbanzo, navy beans. Slim Fast canned drinks also contain this ratio.


Muscle Glycogen Recovery after High Intensity Low Duration Exercise
I.e. Explosive anaerobic workouts
Exact Same As Above
These requirements are for physically active people regardless of modality.