Speed Effects on the Accuracy of Heart Rate as Oxygen-Uptake Indicator in Short-Distance Shuttle Running

ABSTRACT

Purpose: Despite the accuracy of heart rate (HR) as an indicator of the aerobic engagement has been evaluated in several intermittent on-court activities, its validity as an oxygen uptake (${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$) indicator during shuttle running over short paths remains uncertain. Moreover, it is unclear whether speed may affect such validity. This study evaluated the HR ability in estimating the ${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$ during 5-m shuttle running at different speeds. Methods: ${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$ and HR of 12 physically active young men were recorded during an incremental forward running (FW) protocol and a 5-m shuttle test at 50%, 60%, and 75% of maximal aerobic speed (MAS). Slope and intercept of the relationship between HR and ${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$ (HR/${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$) were individually determined, in both protocols. The HR measured during the shuttle test was used in the FW HR/${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$ to estimate ${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$ at each shuttle speed. A paired Student’s t-test compared slopes and intercepts of the two HR/${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$. A two-way RM-ANOVA and an equality test examined, respectively, the differences and the equality between measured and estimated ${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$. Lastly, a Bland–Altman plot described the accuracy and precision of the estimated ${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$ at each shuttle intensity. Results: Slopes and intercepts of the HR/${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$ appeared not different between FW and shuttle running. At 50%MAS, HR underestimated the ${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$ (~7%), whereas returned accurate values at the two higher velocities, although with high variability (±18%). Conclusions: When using HR as ${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$ indicator during shuttle running over short paths, a separated analysis of the HR validity as ${\dot{V}}_{O_2}$ indicator is recommended especially when administering different exercise intensities.

KEYWORDS:

• Cardiorespiratory response
• changes of direction
• intermittent running
• performance assessment
• small-sided games
• team sports
• testing
• turning

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the participants’ availability in this study. The authors are also grateful to Prof. Stefano Longo for the constructive comments to the paper.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Authors’ contributions

Susanna Rampichini, Eloisa Limonta, Matteo Zago, Chiarella Sforza, Fabio Esposito contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Susanna Rampichini, Eloisa Limonta, Matteo Zago, Emiliano Cè, Angela Valentina Bisconti, Filippo Bertozzi and Marta Borrelli. Data interpretation was performed by Susanna Rampichini, Eloisa Limonta, and Fabio Esposito. Literature review was conducted by Susanna Rampichini, Marta Borrelli, and Fabio Esposito. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Susanna Rampichini and Fabio Esposito and all authors commented on the subsequent versions. All authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Data availability statement

The datasets generated during the current study are available from the corresponding author on request.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by institutional funds of the Department of Biomedical Sciences for Health, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy.