Physiological Responses in Rhythmic Gymnastics: The elegant performance sport that ՙՙcovers՚՚ the intense exertion
Keywords:
training load, aerobic-anaerobic capacity, Rhythmic Gymnastics athletesAbstract
The aim of the present study was to determine the physiological responses and the intensity of the training load during the execution of different Rhythmic Gymnastics competition routines. A total of 39 female athletes, aged 13.4±1.6 years old, elite-level (n=15), members of the National Teams of Greece and Cyprus and nonelite level (n=24) with competitive participation in Inter-club and Panhellenic Competitions. Measurements were obtained in the Laboratory (VO2max, HR, La, RPE) and on the competition field (VO2, HR, La) on different days. During the performance on the competition field, each athlete performed from 4 to 8 routines on the same apparatus. A total of 214 programs with five different apparatus (hoop, rope, ball, clubs, ribbon) were evaluated. The athletes presented higher metabolic demands on the field compared to the laboratory test. Significant differences were found in oxygen consumption (p<0.001) while heart rate and lactate concentration showed similar values between the apparatus used for different performances, despite their specific technique. The intensity of the training ranged from 80% to 100% of HRmax throughout the competition performance on all five apparatus. These results revealed the high-level training-load that Rhythmic Gymnastics athletes received during the performance of their competition programs. However, these metabolic demands are not perceived by the spectator when watching the competitions, as the artistic choreography and the skill of execution with the Rhythmic Gymnastics apparatus hide the intensity of the effort exerted by the athletes.
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