Trisha Scribbans, PhD // Photo by: Garrick Kozier
Is your workout not working? Maybe you’re a non-responder
FKRM assistant prof Scribbans co-authors article in PLOS ONE
The research study “Inter-Individual Variability in the Adaptive Responses to Endurance and Sprint Interval Training: A Randomized Crossover Study” co-authored by Trisha Scribbans, PhD, assistant professor in the faculty of kinesiology and recreation management, has been accepted for publication in PLOS ONE, an international, peer-reviewed, open-access, online publication.
Reference: Bonafiglia JT, Rotundo MP, Whittall JP, Scribbans TD, Graham RB, Gurd BJ (2016) Inter-Individual Variability in the Adaptive Responses to Endurance and Sprint Interval Training: A Randomized Crossover Study. PLoS ONE 11(12): e0167790. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0167790
Lay Summary: Although exercise training improves markers of cardiorespiratory fitness at a group level, not all individuals respond similarly to a given training program. Specifically, studies using both endurance (e.g. low/moderate intensity for 30-60 mins) and sprint-interval training (.g. 4-8, 30 second ‘all out’/maximal sprints interspersed with brief periods of rest) observe a proportion of individuals who do not demonstrate meaningful increases in these markers following training (i.e. non-responders).
Our study sought to determine if individuals who do not respond to one type of training are non-responders for a different type of training. To accomplish this we had twenty-one participants complete two different 3-week training periods, endurance and sprint-interval training, in a randomized order separated by a 3-month washout period. We found that some individuals who did not see a large change in cardiorespiratory fitness following endurance training did experience an increase following sprint-interval training (and vice-versa).
The main conclusion from this study is that individuals demonstrate distinct patterns of response following endurance and sprint-interval training suggesting that individuals are not non-responders to all exercise, but are more sensitive to certain training protocols.
Read the article here.