Can 2 Weeks of High Intensity Interval Training in Healthy 65-85 Year-olds Improve Cardiorespiratory Fitness?
Condition: Cardiorespiratory Fitness
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      The incidence of conditions requiring surgical intervention increases with age, however there
      is a reported decline in the rates of elective surgical procedures in those over 65. This is
      associated with older patients being described as "less fit" and more at risk of
      postoperative complications, leading to decreased provision of surgical care to those at
      need. Exercise interventions have the potential to reverse some of the decline in
      cardiovascular fitness associated with aging and improve the elderly's' "fitness for surgery"
      and potentially allow increased access to surgical care for those most in need of it.
    

Detailed description: 
      The percentage of people aged >65 y in the United Kingdom increased from 15% in 1985 to 17%
      in 2010, an increase of 1.7 million people. One age-associated physiological change is the
      reduction in vascular function that is observed, both at the levels of the large arteries and
      the muscle microvasculature. In itself this vascular dysfunction is associated with reduced
      aerobic performance. Cardiorespiratory fitness (marked by aerobic performance) has been shown
      to be an independent predictor of postoperative mortality, which provides more accurate
      prognostic information than age alone. In contrast, physical activity can reverse elements of
      pathophysiology associated with these conditions, including vascular dysfunction.
      Nonetheless, major roadblocks to exercise as a strategy to combat age-associated vascular
      dysfunction and associated conditions exist, such as poor exercise tolerance and "lack of
      time".

      The aim of this study is to investigate whether if novel low-volume, time-efficient training
      strategies can improve indices of vascular health and cardiorespiratory performance in older
      individuals with a view towards improving their fitness for surgery. Numerous studies have
      demonstrated that periods of supervised exercise training effectively improve indices of
      cardiorespiratory (blood pressure, aerobic capacity and blood lipids and vascular function.
      However, the majority of these studies were conducted using high-volume continuous submaximal
      aerobic training (e.g. 50-65% VO2max for 30-60 min) or moderate to high volume progressive
      weight training. This research group have recently shown the efficacy of a time-efficient
      exercise strategy known as HIIT - High Intensity Interval Training, for improving VO2 max and
      muscle mass in young individuals with heightened metabolic disease risk and also demonstrated
      significant improvements in VO2 max comparable to classic aerobic exercise training using
      several different time-efficient HIIT protocols in as little as 4 weeks. This study aims to
      quantify the benefits of 2 weeks of HIIT.
    

Intervention name(s): HIIT
Intervention type(s): Behavioral
Intervention description(s): 2 Weeks of High Intensity Interval Training on a Cycle ergometer
Intervention model: Single Group Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Treatment