Prior exercise speeds pulmonary O2 uptake kinetics by increases in both local muscle O2 availability and O2 utilization

Abstract

The effect of prior exercise on pulmonary O2 uptake (V̇o2p), leg blood flow (LBF), and muscle deoxygenation at the onset of heavy-intensity alternate-leg knee-extension (KE) exercise was examined. Seven subjects [27 ( 5 ) yr; mean (SD)] performed step transitions ( n = 3; 8 min) from passive KE following no warm-up (HVY 1) and heavy-intensity (Δ50%, 8 min; HVY 2) KE exercise. V̇o2p was measured breath-by-breath; LBF was measured by Doppler ultrasound at the femoral artery; and oxy (O2Hb)-, deoxy (HHb)-, and total (Hbtot) hemoglobin/myoglobin of the vastus lateralis muscle were measured continuously by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS; Hamamatsu NIRO-300). Phase 2 V̇o2p, LBF, and HHb data were fit with a monoexponential model. The time delay (TD) from exercise onset to an increase in HHb was also determined and an HHb effective time constant (HHb − MRT = TD + τ) was calculated. Prior heavy-intensity exercise resulted in a speeding ( P < 0.05) of phase 2 V̇o2p kinetics [HVY 1: 42 s ( 6 ); HVY 2: 37 s ( 8 )], with no change in the phase 2 amplitude [HVY 1: 1.43 l/min (0.21); HVY 2: 1.48 l/min (0.21)] or amplitude of the V̇o2p slow component [HVY 1: 0.18 l/min (0.08); HVY 2: 0.18 l/min (0.09)]. O2Hb and Hbtot were elevated throughout the on-transient following prior heavy-intensity exercise. The τLBF [HVY 1: 39 s ( 7 ); HVY 2: 47 s ( 21 ); P = 0.48] and HHb-MRT [HVY 1: 23 s ( 4 ); HVY 2: 21 s ( 7 ); P = 0.63] were unaffected by prior exercise. However, the increase in HHb [HVY 1: 21 μM ( 10 ); HVY 2: 25 μM ( 10 ); P < 0.001] and the HHb-to-V̇o2p ratio [(HHb/V̇o2p) HVY 1: 14 μM·l−1·min−1 ( 6 ); HVY 2: 17 μM·l−1·min−1 ( 5 ); P < 0.05] were greater following prior heavy-intensity exercise. These results suggest that the speeding of phase 2 τV̇o2p was the result of both elevated local O2 availability and greater O2 extraction evidenced by the greater HHb amplitude and HHb/V̇o2p ratio following prior heavy-intensity exercise.