PMID 41030318

Research
All papers

Influence of upper-body high-intensity intermittent training on energy metabolism and maximal oxygen uptake in elite swimmers

Zhang L, Li H, Wang T, Chen C

Question

Does 4 weeks of upper-body high-intensity intermittent training improve energy metabolism and maximal oxygen uptake more than moderate-intensity continuous upper-body training in elite swimmers?

Summary

In elite swimmers, 4 weeks of supervised upper-body Tabata-style resistance-band HIIT improved VO2max and several energy-system measures more than a matched moderate-intensity circuit. The protocol was short and sport-specific, and the evidence is most relevant to trained athletes rather than general fitness users.

Methodology

  • Elite freestyle, backstroke, and butterfly swimmers from a local sports faculty.
  • 24 participants.
  • Resistance-band upper-body circuit.
  • Work intervals: 20 seconds.
  • Recovery: 10 seconds between exercises; 3 minutes between sets.
  • Intensity: Maximum effort with target at or above 85% HRmax.
  • 60 minutes total including 20 minute warm-up, 30 minute main training, and 10 minute cooldown/stretching.
  • 3 sessions per week.
  • 4 weeks; 12 sessions.
  • Randomized controlled longitudinal training study
  • VO2max, Energy metabolism, and Blood lactate were tracked.

Outcomes

Glycolysis

HIIT increased glycolytic contribution while MICT did not.

Group x time F(1,22)=87.882, p<0.001, eta2=0.800; HIIT 39.12 +/- 8.69 to 52.42 +/- 8.47, p<0.001; MICT 35.51 +/- 9.19 to 34.66 +/- 8.96, p>0.05.

Improved

Aerobic oxidation

HIIT improved aerobic oxidation more than MICT.

Group x time F(1,22)=63.809, p<0.001; HIIT 104.94 +/- 30.83 to 148.17 +/- 30.73, p<0.001; post-test HIIT greater than MICT, p<0.001.

Improved

Phosphagen

HIIT produced a significant phosphagen-system improvement.

Group effect F=6.376, p<0.05; time effect F=25.342, p<0.001; group x time F=29.338, p<0.001.

Improved

VO2max

VO2max improved after HIIT and was superior to MICT after training.

The article reports significant time and interaction effects for VO2max favoring HIIT, p<0.05.

Improved

Insights

  • A dry-land upper-body Tabata circuit can improve sport-relevant aerobic and anaerobic measures in already trained swimmers.
  • The intervention used simple resistance-band movements but required close supervision, HR tracking, and athlete-level effort.
  • This study should not be used as direct evidence for untrained adults or lower-body/bodyweight HIIT.

Limitations

  • Small sample of elite swimmers.
  • Short 4-week intervention.
  • No direct swimming race-performance or stroke-kinematic outcomes.
  • Upper-body dry-land protocol limits generalization to whole-body HIIT.
  • Athlete-only sample limits applicability to general users.

Safety

  • All participants completed the training and testing.
  • Testing deviations were corrected promptly to reduce injury risk.
  • No adverse events were reported in the full text.