Effect of conditioning horses every third day at v10 on measures of fitness.
This study examined the effect of exercising horses five times per fortnight with two bouts of 5 min duration at their v(10) with 2 days between consecutive exercise sessions. Five Anglo-Arabian horses were treadmill-conditioned for 6 weeks. A standardized exercise test (SET) was performed at the beginning of the conditioning period (CP) to determine the blood lactate-running speed (BLRS) and the heart rate-running speed (HRRS) relationship and the SET was repeated every 2 weeks. After each SET, the BLRS relation was used to calculate the horse's speed (v = velocity), which produced a blood lactate concentration (LA) of 10 mmol/l (v(10) ) and 4 mmol/l (v(4) ). From the HRRS was calculated the speed at which the horses had a heart rate of 180 b/min (v(180) ). Each horse was then conditioned for the next 2 weeks five times at its individual v(10) for two 5-min bouts. Exercise speed was individually adapted to the new v(10) every 2 weeks. In addition, horses were submitted to another SET prescription to determine the peak oxygen consumption (VO(2 peak) ) before, after 3 weeks and at the end of CP. The v(4) of horses increased during the CP (p < 0.05). v(180) did not change (p > 0.05). VO(2 peak) increased in the first 3 weeks of CP (p < 0.05) and levelled off afterwards (p > 0.05). The conclusion drawn was that exercising horses five times per fortnight at their v(10) for two 5-min bouts with 2 days between consecutive exercise sessions improved v(4) and VO(2 peak) but not v(180).
Lindner
A
A
Arbeitsgruppe Pferd, Juelich, Germany. arnolindner@t-online.de
López
R A
RA
Durante
E
E
Hernandez
H
H
Botta
V
V
Sadaba
S
S
Boffi
F M
FM
D000818:Animals; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology; D006736:Horses / Q000097:blood / Q000502:physiology*; D019344:Lactic Acid / Q000097:blood; D010805:Physical Conditioning, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D013997:Time Factors
D019344:Lactic Acid