30889 - Physiology Applied to Preventive and Adapted Motor Activity

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student: - knows the physiological bases of cardio-circulatory, respiratory, and metabolic responses to exercise tests, as well as the physiological aspects of protocols for physical activity prescription aimed at preventive goals or adapted to particular health conditions - is able to evaluate quantitative parameters of these responses and relate them to the normal range of variability - knows and is able to evaluate functional changes in the muscular-skeletal induced by physical training or detraining - will understand the physiological basis of growth and development of the human organism in childhood and adolescence and physiological responses to exercise in children and adolescents - knows functional changes of major organs and systems associated with aging and the physiological responses to exercise in the elderly - is able to describe the basic functional differences and different responses to physical exercise of female subjects, both in the developmental and old age.

Course contents

Energy metabolism and muscle work:. Oxidative processes. Steady state. Transient phases and oxygen deficit. Maximum oxygen uptake. Mechanism lactate. Alactacid anaerobic energy sources.

Acute cardiovascular responses during physical exercise: Changes of cardiac function during exercise: heart rate, stroke volume, cardiac output, blood pressure, venous return in relation to different levels of exercise intensity. Cardiac output redistribution during exercise. Integrative mechanisms of cardio-circulatory responses. EEG during exercise. Pulmonary circulation during physical exercise. Thermoregulation and circulatory function during muscular work. Water balance in exercise of varying intensity.

Respiratory responses to physical exercise: Ventilatory changes at varying intensities of exercise. Maximal voluntary ventilation and maximal exercise ventilation. Changes in alveolar and blood partial pressures of respiratory gases at different levels of exercise intensity. Gas exchanges during exercise. Changes in the extraction of O2. Integration of ventilatory responses. The ventilatory equivalent of O2, the ventilatory breakpoint and anaerobic threshold. Acid-base balance during exercise.

Muscular and metabolic adaptations: functional modifications induced by training on skeletal muscles. Nervous and hypertrophic factors. Changes in the muscle vessels. Effects of detraining and recovery after retraining. Modification of the muscle fiber types. Changes in the lactate threshold, the respiratory quotient and the O2 uptake.

Cardio-respiratory adaptations to training: Long term changes in: heart size, stroke volume, heart rate, cardiac output, muscle blood flow, blood pressure, blood volume, and blood composition. Long-term changes in lung volumes, respiratory rate, ventilation, gas exchanges and transport. Acclimatization to heat and cold.

Controls and hormonal adaptations in physical exercise: Hormonal control of energy processes and circulation during exercise. Main hormonal response to physical exercise, their mechanism and physiological significance.

Physiological responses to exercise during growth : Development of strength in childhood and adolescence. Maturation of aerobic functions. Cardiovascular and respiratory responses. Physiological adaptations to training in the age of development.

Physiological responses to exercise in the elderly : Decline of physiological functions with age. Muscular, metabolic, cardiovascular and respiratory responses to exercise, in old age. Adaptations to training.

Sex differences in physiological responses to exercise : Muscle, metabolic, and cardio-respiratory functions in women, both at rest and during exercise. Effects of exercise on reproductive function. Effects of the menstrual cycle on physical performance. Exercise and pregnancy.

Effects of inactivity on physiological functions: effects of detraining and immobilization on metabolic, musculoskeletal, circulatory and respiratory functions. Recovery after immobilization.

Physiological control of metabolism and body weight and importance of physical exercise in the homeostasis of body fat.

Readings/Bibliography

- McArdle, Katch, Katch. Fisiologia applicata allo Sport, Terza Edizione, Casa Editrice Ambrosiana, 2018.

- Cerretelli P. Fisiologia dell'esercizio Società Editrice Universo - Roma 2a ed. 2001

- Wilmore and Costill Fisiologia dell'esercizio fisico e dello sport Calzetti e Mariucci 2005

- Astrand P-O, Rodhahl K, Dahl HA, Stromme SB. Textbook of work physiology. 4a ed. Human Kinetics 2003.

Teaching methods

Lectures

Practical exercises (2nd module)

Assessment methods

Oral examination on the course syllabus and the papers discussed during the lectures

Teaching tools

Exercise Physiology laboratory, with many facilities for cardio-pulmonary exercise tests

Office hours

See the website of Alessandro Piras