CHAPTER 25 (Ergogenic Aids)

scott k. powers edward t.
howley
Exercise Physiology
Theory and Application to Fitness and Performance
eighth edition
Chapter
Ergogenic Aids
Presentation prepared by:

Brian B. Parr, Ph.D.
University of South Carolina Aiken
Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display outside of classroom use.
Chapter 25
Objectives
1. Define ergogenic aid.

2. Explain why a “placebo” treatment in a “double-blind
design” is used in research studies involving
ergogenic aids.
3. Describe, in general, the effectiveness of nutritional
supplements on performance.
4. Describe the effect of additional oxygen on
performance; distinguish between hyperbaric
oxygenation and that accomplished by breathing
oxygen-enriched gas mixtures.
5. Describe blood doping and its potential for
improving endurance performance.
Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Chapter 25
Objectives
6. Explain the mechanism by which ingested buffers

might improve anaerobic performances.
7. Explain how amphetamines might improve
exercise performance.
8. Describe the various mechanisms by which
caffeine might improve performance.
9. Identify the risks associated with using chewing
tobacco to obtain a nicotine.
10. Describe the physiological and psychological
effects of different types of warm-ups.
Chapter 25
Outline
 Research Design  Aerobic Performance  Drugs

Oxygen Amphetamines
Concerns
Blood Doping Caffeine
 Dietary  Anaerobic Nicotine
Supplements Performance  Physical Warm-Up
Blood Buffers

Chapter 25 Ergogenic Aids
Ergogenic Aids
 Substances or phenomena that are work-producing

and are believed to increase performance
– Nutrients
– Drugs
– Warm-up exercises
– Hypnosis
– Stress management
– Blood doping
– Oxygen breathing
– Music
– Extrinsic biomechanical aids

Chapter 25 Research Design Concerns
Research Design Concerns
 Amount of substance
– Too little or too much may show no effect
 Subject
– May be effective in “untrained” but not “trained” subjects, and
vice versa
– The “value” as determined by the subject
 Task
– Endurance vs. short-term events
– Large-motor vs. fine-motor activities
 Use
– May enhance short-term performance but compromise long-
term performance
Research Design Concerns
 Placebo
– Look-alike substance containing nothing that will improve
performance
– Athlete’s belief in a substance may influence performance
 Double-blind studies
– Neither the investigators nor the subjects are aware of who is
receiving the treatment

Changes in Performance–The Placebo

Effect

In Summary
 Ergogenic aids are defined as substances or phenomena

that are work-producing and are believed to increase
performance.
 Due to the fact that an athlete’s belief in a substance may
influence performance, scientists use a placebo or look-
alike substance to control for this effect. In addition,
scientists use a double-blind research design in which the
investigator and subject are both unaware of the treatment.

Chapter 25 Dietary Supplements
Dietary Supplements
 Little evidence that dietary supplements improve

performance with the exception of creatine
 Despite this, 80% of athletes use supplements
 Dietary Supplements Health Education Act (1994)
– Legislated a lack of regulation of dietary supplements
– Supplements may contain contaminants
 Anabolic steroid which could lead to positive drug test

Dietary Supplements for Strength

Trainers

Dietary Supplements for Strength

Trainers (continued)

Chapter 25 The Winning Edge 25.1
Creatine Monohydrate
 Increase muscle phosphocreatine (PC)

– For short-term, explosive exercise
 Supplementation increases muscle creatine levels
– 20–25 g/day loading dose
 ~20% increase in muscle creatine
– 2–5 g/day maintenance dose
 5 g/day appears to be safe for chronic consumption
 Improves ability to maintain force and power output
 Increase in muscle mass
– Due more to water retention than protein synthesis
 Side effects
– Some reported, but no long-term adverse effects
In Summary
 For the most part, there is little evidence that dietary

supplements provide a performance advantage to athletes,
with the possible exception of creatine.

Chapter 25 Aerobic Performance
Oxygen
 Increases PO2 of blood

 Hyperbaric chamber
– Breathing air under higher pressure
– 21% (or higher) O2
– No evidence of improved performance
 Endurance run on treadmill and weight lifting
 Increased %O2 mixtures
– Breathing >21% O2 mixtures at atmospheric pressure
– Improved time to exhaustion
 Throughout range of inspired %O2

Effect of PO2 on Performance: O2

Enriched Gas vs. Hyperbaric Chamber

Oxygen: Prior to Exercise
 Rationale is to “store” O2 in blood

– Cannot really increase O2 bound to hemoglobin
 97% saturated at rest (200 ml O2/L blood)
 Increased by only 3% (6 ml/L) breathing 100% O2
– Can increase O2 dissolved in plasma
 Dissolved oxygen increases from 3 to 21 ml O2/L blood
 100 extra ml O2 stored in blood
– However, blood O2 returns to normal within a few breaths of air
 Some evidence that O2 breathing prior to exercise
improves performance in short events
– Must take place within 2 min of event
– Not practical for athletes

Oxygen: During Exercise
 Rationale is to prevent muscle hypoxia by delivering

additional O2
– Increase in O2 content of arterial blood is balanced by decrease
in blood flow to muscle
– No real increase in oxygen delivery to muscle
 Only 2–5% increase in VO2 max
 However, there is an increase in time to exhaustion
– Beneficial in athletes who experience desaturation during
exercise
– High PO2 slows glycolysis and reduces lactate and H+ formation
 Not practical for use in performance

Oxygen: After Exercise
 Rationale is to speed recovery and be ready for second

bout of exercise
 Early results suggested it works
– However, the subjects knew they were breathing oxygen
 Later research showed no benefit
– No improvement in recovery HR, ventilation, or post-exercise VO2
– No improvement in subsequent performance

In Summary
 Oxygen breathing before or after exercise seems to have

little or no effect on performance, while oxygen breathing
during exercise improves endurance performance.

Blood Doping
 Infusion of RBCs to increase hemoglobin

concentration and oxygen carrying capacity of blood
– Autologous transfusion
 Uses subject’s own blood
– Homologous transfusion
 Uses matched donor
 Effects of infusion of 900 ml blood
– Increase [Hb] 8–9%
– Increase VO2 max 4–5%
– Increase performance 3–34%
 Effects last for 10–12 weeks

Changes in Hemoglobin Levels

Following Removal and Reinfusion

Blood Doping
 Erythropoietin (EPO)
– Hormone that stimulates RBC production
– Part of therapy for chemotherapy or dialysis patients
– Can lead to extremely high RBC
 Has led to death of athletes
 Testing for EPO use or RBC infusion
– Hematological passport
 Tracks athlete’s blood over years to detect sudden changes
 Artificial oxygen carriers or Hemopure
– Not shown to improve performance

In Summary
 Blood doping refers to the reinfusion of red blood cells in

order to increase the hemoglobin concentration and
oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood.
 Due to improvements in blood storage techniques, blood
doping has been shown to be effective in improving VO2
max and endurance performance.

Chapter 25 Anaerobic Performance
Anaerobic Performance
 Emphasis on buffering H+ released from muscle

 Blood buffers (sodium bicarbonate)
– Enhances ability to buffer H+ during exercise
– Improves performances of 1–10 minutes duration or repeated
bouts of high-intensity exercise
 No benefit for tasks of less than one minute
– Optimal dose
 0.3 g•kg body weight–1 (with 1 liter of water)
– Evidence of placebo effect in some studies
– Large doses can lead to side effects
 Diarrhea and vomiting

Chapter 25 Anaerobic Performance
In Summary
 The ingestion of sodium bicarbonate improves

performances of 1 to 10 minutes’ duration or repeated
bouts of high-intensity exercise.

Chapter 25 Drugs
Amphetamines
 Sympathomimetic
– Catecholamine-like effect
 Cause increased arousal and perception of increased
energy and self-confidence
 Improve performance in fatigued subjects only
– No improvement in alert, non-fatigued subjects

Chapter 25 A Closer Look 25.1
2-agonists: Clenbuterol and Salbutamol
 Clenbuterol
– Activates 2 receptors in airways to treat asthma
– Anabolic agent
 10–20% increase in muscle mass
 Type I to type II fiber conversion, hypertrophy of type II fibers
– Used by athletes in power events (sprinting, football)
 Salbutamol
– Inhaled2-agonist to treat asthma
– Ingested, improves performance in supramaximal exercise
 Both are associated with severe side effects

Chapter 25 Drugs
In Summary
 Amphetamines have a catecholamine-like effect that leads

to an increased arousal and a perception of increased
energy and self-confidence.
 While amphetamines improve the performance of fatigued
subjects, they do not have this effect on alert, motivated,
and nonfatigued subjects.

Chapter 25 Drugs
Caffeine
 May improve performance at the muscle or nervous

system, or the delivery of fuel to muscle
 Can elevate blood glucose and increase fat utilization
 Can decrease perception of fatigue and lower RPE
during prolonged exercise
 Effect is variable and dose-related
– Effect may be diminished in regular users
 Potential side effects
– Insomnia, diarrhea, anxiety, irritability
– Diuretic effect?
 Caffeine-ephedrine mixtures
Chapter 25 Drugs
Sources of
caffeine

Chapter 25 Drugs
Factors Influenced by Caffeine That

Might Improve Performance

Chapter 25 Drugs
Mechanisms by Which Caffeine May

Increase FFA Mobilization

Chapter 25 Drugs
In Summary
 Caffeine can potentially improve performance at the muscle

or in the central nervous system, or in the delivery of fuel
for muscular work. Caffeine can elevate blood glucose and
simultaneously increase the utilization of fat.
 Caffeine’s ergogenic effect on performance is variable, and
appears to be dose-related and less pronounced in
subjects who are daily users of caffeine.

Chapter 25 Drugs
Nicotine
 Smoking or chewing tobacco

– Smoking leads to cancers and heart and lung diseases
– Causes diseases of the mouth, including oral cancer and dental
caries
 Can stimulate both sympathetic and parasympathetic
nervous systems
– Small doses increase autonomic activity
– Large doses block autonomic responses
 Cardiovascular or GI effects
– Increases in HR, higher RMR, increased cardiovascular
responses to light exercise

Chapter 25 Drugs
The Relaxing and Stimulating Effects

of Nicotine

Chapter 25 Drugs
In Summary
 Nicotine has varied effects depending on whether the

parasympathetic or sympathetic nervous system is
stimulated. The use of smokeless tobacco can cause dental
caries, gum disease, and oral cancer.

Chapter 25 Physical Warm-Up
Physical Warm-Up
 Causes both physiological and psychological

changes that are beneficial to performance
– Increased muscle temperature, arousal, focus
on event
 Warm-up activities
– Identical to performance
– Directly related to performance
– General warm-up

Recommendations
 Short-term performances (≤10 s max effort)

– ~40–60% VO2 max for 5–10 min, followed by 5 min recovery
– May reduce high-energy phosphates
 Intermediate-term performances (>10 s, ≤5 min)
– ~60–70% VO2 max for 5–10 min, followed by ≤5 min recovery
– Goal to begin performance with slightly elevated VO2
 Long-term performances (≥5 min)
– ~60–70% VO2 max for 5–10 min
– Too much may deplete muscle glycogen or increase thermal
strain

Stretching
 Increases joint flexibility

 Increases muscle-tendon compliance
 Reduces risk of injury?
– Little support in the literature
– Stretching outside periods of exercise may reduce risk of injury
– Stretching just prior to exercise does not

In Summary
 Warm-up activities can be identical to performance, directly

related to performance, or indirectly related to performance
(general warm-up). Warm-up causes both physiological and
psychological changes that are beneficial to performance.

Chapter 25
Study Questions
1. What is an ergogenic aid?

2. Why must an investigator use a “placebo” treatment to
evaluate the effectiveness of an ergogenic aid?
3. Provide a brief summary of the role that dietary supplements
play in improving performance.
4. What is a double-blind research design?
5. Does breathing 100% O2 improve performance? Recovery?
6. Breathing hyperoxic gas mixtures improves performance
without changing O2 delivery to tissue. How is this possible?

Chapter 25
Study Questions
7. What is blood doping, and why does it appear to improve
performance now when it did not in the earliest
investigations?
8. How might ingested buffers improve short-term
performances?
9. Although amphetamines improve performance in fatigued
individuals, they might not have this effect on motivated
subjects. Why?
10. How might caffeine improve long-term performances? Can
the results be extrapolated to “real” performances in the
field?

Chapter 25
Study Questions
11. Chewing tobacco may provide a nicotine “high,” but not

without risks. What are they?
12. Describe the different types of warm-up activities and the
mechanisms by which they may improve performance.

CHAPTER 25 (Ergogenic Aids)

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scott k. powers edward t.

Presentation prepared by:

1. Define ergogenic aid.

6. Explain the mechanism by which ingested buffers

 Research Design  Aerobic Performance  Drugs

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Substances or phenomena that are work-producing

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Research Design Concerns

Research Design Concerns

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Changes in Performance–The Placebo

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Ergogenic aids are defined as substances or phenomena

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Little evidence that dietary supplements improve

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Dietary Supplements for Strength

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Dietary Supplements for Strength

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Increase muscle phosphocreatine (PC)

 For the most part, there is little evidence that dietary

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Increases PO2 of blood

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Effect of PO2 on Performance: O2

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Oxygen: Prior to Exercise

 Rationale is to “store” O2 in blood

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Oxygen: During Exercise

 Rationale is to prevent muscle hypoxia by delivering

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Oxygen: After Exercise

 Rationale is to speed recovery and be ready for second

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Oxygen breathing before or after exercise seems to have

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Infusion of RBCs to increase hemoglobin

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Changes in Hemoglobin Levels

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Blood doping refers to the reinfusion of red blood cells in

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Emphasis on buffering H+ released from muscle

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 The ingestion of sodium bicarbonate improves

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

2-agonists: Clenbuterol and Salbutamol

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Amphetamines have a catecholamine-like effect that leads

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 May improve performance at the muscle or nervous

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Factors Influenced by Caffeine That

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Mechanisms by Which Caffeine May

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Caffeine can potentially improve performance at the muscle

Copyright ©2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 Smoking or chewing tobacco