An Updated Panorama of "Living Low-Training High" Altitude/Hypoxic Methods

Olivier Girard; Franck Brocherie; Paul S R Goods; Gregoire P Millet

doi:10.3389/fspor.2020.00026

An Updated Panorama of "Living Low-Training High" Altitude/Hypoxic Methods

Front Sports Act Living. 2020 Mar 31:2:26. doi: 10.3389/fspor.2020.00026. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Olivier Girard¹, Franck Brocherie², Paul S R Goods^{1

3}, Gregoire P Millet⁴

Affiliations

¹ School of Human Sciences, Exercise and Sport Science, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia.
² Laboratory Sport, Expertise and Performance, EA 7370, French Institute of Sport (INSEP), Paris, France.
³ Western Australian Institute of Sport (WAIS), Perth, WA, Australia.
⁴ Faculty of Biology and Medicine, Institute of Sport Sciences, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Abstract

With minimal costs and travel constraints for athletes, the "living low-training high" (LLTH) approach is becoming an important intervention for modern sport. The popularity of the LLTH model of altitude training is also associated with the fact that it only causes a slight disturbance to athletes' usual daily routine, allowing them to maintain their regular lifestyle in their home environment. In this perspective article, we discuss the evolving boundaries of the LLTH paradigm and its practical applications for athletes. Passive modalities include intermittent hypoxic exposure at rest (IHE) and Ischemic preconditioning (IPC). Active modalities use either local [blood flow restricted (BFR) exercise] and/or systemic hypoxia [continuous low-intensity training in hypoxia (CHT), interval hypoxic training (IHT), repeated-sprint training in hypoxia (RSH), sprint interval training in hypoxia (SIH) and resistance training in hypoxia (RTH)]. A combination of hypoxic methods targeting different attributes also represents an attractive solution. In conclusion, a growing number of LLTH altitude training methods exists that include the application of systemic and local hypoxia stimuli, or a combination of both, for performance enhancement in many disciplines.

Keywords: altitude training; live low train high; local hypoxia; simulated altitude; systemic hypoxia.