99789 - RISPOSTE ACUTE E CRONICHE ALL’ESERCIZIO

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student: - knows the acute metabolic, cardiovascular, and respiratory responses before, during and after physical exercise - knows the morphological, neuromuscular, metabolic, cardiovascular, respiratory and endocrine adaptations (chronic responses) induced by training and physical de-conditioning; - knows the influence of age, gender, environmental conditions and health status on these responses; - is able to apply the aforementioned knowledge to functional evaluation.

Course contents

Energy metabolism and muscular work: Energy balances and calorimetry. Resting metabolism and activity metabolism. Energy reserves of the organism. Thermodynamics of muscle contraction. Oxidative processes. Steady state. Transient phases and oxygen debt. Maximum oxygen consumption. Lactacid mechanism. Alactic anaerobic energy sources.

Acute cardiovascular responses to exercise: Changes in cardiac function during exercise. Changes in heart rate, systolic volume, cardiac output, blood pressure, venous return in relation to various levels of exercise intensity. Flow redistribution during exercise. Integration of cardio-circulatory responses. 

Acute respiratory responses in exercise: Ventilatory variations at various exercise intensities. Voluntary and exertional maximal ventilation. Pulmonary and blood variations in partial pressures of respiratory gases at different levels of exercise intensity. Gas exchange during exercise. Variations in O2 extraction. Integration of ventilatory responses. The ventilatory equivalent of O2, the respiratory breakpoint and the anaerobic threshold. Acid-base balance during exercise. Thermoregulation and circulatory function in muscular work. Water balance in physical exercise of varying intensity. Acclimatization to heat and cold. Pulmonary circulation in physical exercise.

Muscular and metabolic adaptations: Functional changes induced by training on muscles. Nervous and trophic factors and their temporal combination. Changes in muscle vascularization. Effects of immobilization and recovery after retraining. Changes in muscle fiber types. Changes in lactate threshold, respiratory quotient and O2 consumption.

Cardio-respiratory adaptations to training: Long-term changes in: heart size, stroke volume, heart rate, cardiac output, muscle blood flow, blood pressure, blood volume, and blood composition. Long-term changes in lung volumes, respiratory rate, ventilation, gas exchange and gas transport.

Hormonal controls and adaptations in physical exercise: Hormonal control of energy processes and circulation during exercise. Main hormonal responses to physical exercise, their mechanism and physiological significance.

Readings/Bibliography

1. McArdle, Katch and Katch Principi di Fisiologia applicata allo sport Casa Editrice Ambrosiana, Milano,2018
2. Powers and Howley Fisiologia dell’esercizio Piccin editore 2018
3. Wilmore and Costill Fisiologia dell'esercizio fisico e dello sport Calzetti e Mariucci 2005

For further information:

• Paolo Cerretelli Fisiologia dell’esercizio: sport, ambiente, età, sesso. Società Editrice Universo Roma 2001

Teaching methods

Classroom lessons with slides which will be made available to the students

Assessment methods

The knowledge of the course will be verified by written examination.

Office hours

See the website of Alessandro Piras