Intermittent Hypoxic Training (IHT) and Altitude Simulation
Russians developed altitude training for pilots in 19
4
0’s
Discovered that continuous high altitude exposure was unnecessary & inefficient
Daily, short 1-hr exposures for 15 days were more effective
Developed similar schedules for endurance athletes in 1970's
Increased red blood cell count & stamina, beneficial effects lasted over 2 weeks
Improved aerobic conditioning & athletic performance for their Olympic program
Other Altitude Simulators
Hypobaric Chamber
Vacuum chamber mimics high altitude
Enter for 8 hrs a day for 30 days
Expensive ($13K) claustrophobic, noisy,
requires power, not portable
Electric Hypoxicator (Go2Altitude, Hypoxico)
Mechanical, electric oxygen scrubber
Achieves high altitude, use 1 hr a day,
Not portable, heavy, inconvenient
Expensive ($6K)
The History of Altitude Training and
AltoLab
Kip Keino “Father” of altitude training
Lived/trained at 6000’ in Kenya
Won 1500 m Gold in ‘68 Mexico City
Olympics
Won 3000 m Steeplechase in ‘72
Munich Olympics
Live & train at 5000-8000’ for 3-5 weeks
May increase aerobic capacity, but detrimental to some
Poor muscle recovery, constant fatigue
Inconvenient & too expensive for many
Sleep at 5000-8000’ nightly, train at 2500-3000’ daily
Inconvenient, expensive, requires 3-5 weeks
Some do not respond
Mexico Olympics 1968
1970’s Live High/Train High
1990 Live High/Train Low
