Effects of sex differences on energy providing capacities during short duration high-intensity exercise: focusing on changes in exercise duration.

Abstract

Background: This study aimed to examine the effects of sex differences on each energy supply (phosphagen, glycolytic, and oxidative systems) when athletes performing short-duration high-intensity exercises for different durations.

Methods: Eight male and seven female college students specializing in tracks and fields participated in this experiment. They performed full-strength pedaling for the experimental exercise. The participants were asked to pedal at a load of 6.5% of their body weight (kp) for three conditions: 10, 30, and 50 s. The phosphagen system was calculated by considering the fast component of the excess post-exercise oxygen consumption after all tests. The glycolytic system was expressed as the delta value of the difference between the peak and baseline blood lactate concentrations measured during the test. The oxidative system was estimated by subtracting the baseline oxygen uptake from the area of sprint oxygen uptake.

Results: At 10 s, a significant correlation was found between the relative mean power and the phosphagen and glycolytic systems in males. At 30 s, a significant correlation was found between relative mean power and phosphagen and oxidative systems in males, and between glycolytic and oxidative systems in females. At 50 s, a significant correlation was found between relative mean power and oxidative systems in males.

Conclusions: The results of this study indicate that the energy delivery systems supporting high performance in short-duration high-intensity exercise differ between males and females, a finding that is valuable for developing training plans.