David Cooley

Document Type

Presentation

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: The human body must maintain a constant internal environment for optimal operation of cellular activity. This homeostatic balance is maintained at rest but becomes more of a challenge during exercise. An important internal regulatory mechanism is thermoregulation. Thermoregulation is defined as the ability of an organism to maintain a core body temperature within certain boundaries, even when internal and external temperatures are altered. The hypothalamus is responsible for keeping the body’s core temperature within a normal range, around 97 to 99 degrees Fahrenheit, at rest and during exercise. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of heating and cooling fans on thermoregulation during recovery following high intensity, intermittent exercise. METHODS: Five males (M; age 26 + 4.5 yrs) of the UTA Kinesiology department, volunteered to participate in this study. Height (69.4 + 4.3 in.) and weight (178.6 + 25.7 lbs) were also measured. The subjects ran eight 40 yard sprints with a 15 second rest period between each sprint. Immediately afterward, a 12 minute recovery period with a different cooling or heating fan was used to observe their effects on temperature, blood pressure, and heart rate. There were four different recovery conditions. The first session was a passive recovery, where baseline measurements (B) were taken immediately post exercise (min 1) then at 4, 8, and 12 min. The recovery conditions for the next three sessions were randomized among either a heating fan (HF), regular cooling fan (CF), or a cooling fan with a spray of water (CFW). The subjects stood exactly 1 ft in front of the fans. The data collected during the recovery periods included heart rate (HR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and core temperature with an ear thermometer (temp). RESULTS: The recovery heart rates and fan interactions for baseline (BHR1: 166.2 + 3.0, BHR12: 102.0 + 4.8), cooling fan, water (CFWHR1: 174.2 + 8.3, CFWHR12: 99.4 + 4.9), and heating fan (HFHR1: 164.0 + 8.4, HFHR12: 104.0 + 9.3) between min 1 and 12 were not significant (p > 0.05). Only the cooling fan (CFHR1: 165.6 + 5.1, CFHR12: 91.8 + 7.5) was significantly better than passive recovery in lowering heart rate (p < 0.05). The core temperature and cooling fan interactions for baseline core temperature (BTEMP1: 96.6 + 0.55, BTEMP12: 97.2 + 0.45), cooling fan temperature (CFTEMP1: 96.8 + 0.45, CFTEMP12: 97.0 + 0.0), and heating fan temperature (HFTEMP1: 96.8 + 0.84, HFTEMP12: 97.6 + 0.55) between min 1 and 12 were not significant (p > 0.05). Only the cooling fan, water, temperature (CFWTEMP1: 97.8 + 0.84, CFWTEMP12: 97.16 + 0.47) was significantly better than passive recovery in lowering core temperature (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate that a cooling fan is a better way of lowering heart rate after anaerobic exercise than passive recovery alone. Also for lowering temperature after high intensity, intermittent exercise, a cooling fan with a water spray was more effective than passive recovery alone.

Disciplines

Kinesiology | Life Sciences

Publication Date

1-1-2013

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