conditioning question

[mjwhelans]

alright guys...i think this might be a new question

I have an upcoming fight, so for my own free time when it comes to conditioning i train outside, like sprints around a track, endless sprawl and tough shadow boxing, this is all done ourside, it seems to have an affect on my lungs/heart. it seems easier to get out of breath and to get to my target heart rate out in the cold, but is this healthy? like can i continue this into like december, januery and feb. will it affect me in a positive or bad way?
I mean rocky did it in Russia for his fight against Drago. (This is a joke for you angry Sherdoggers who like to flame)

[woogie12]

I don't know if it makes a difference, but now doing my sprints in the cold my chest really hurts and it's tougher to breathe.

Otherwise I don't know if it actually has an effect.

[juanlawnmower]

It just hurts.

[Brad Morris]

Provided you are not prone to respiratory infections cold weather training is a great option. Some studies have shown that training in the cold increases the amount of bodyfat around the internal organs.

Here is a good extract from http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/0905.htm

A unique aspect of exercising in the cold is that it can - somewhat paradoxically - produce both glycogen depletion and high rates of fat metabolism. The glycogen depletion is caused by two factors: first shivering, which causes muscles to empty their glycogen stores at 5-6 times the normal rate; secondly, increased blood levels of epinephrine (adrenaline), a hormone which stimulates glycogen breakdown.

This high rate of glycogen usage tends to empty out muscle glycogen depots, forcing muscles to turn to fat as a source of energy. Epinephrine can also enhance fat metabolism, and there is some evidence that insulin levels are lower during the winter time, an effect which could also spur fat breakdown. Thus, colder portions of the year can be an excellent time to lose weight and improve body composition, especially since the cold also tends to raise one's resting metabolic rate. Additionally, exercising in the cold is often associated with an increased energetic cost of movement which can help push you into a 'negative energy balance' (3).

There is some evidence, albeit controversial, that winter exercise not only makes a sizable dent in your fat stores, but also helps to shed your most dangerous fat - the lard which is inside your body cavities, clinging to your internal organs. It is this deep, internal fat, not the tallow perched under your skin, which is most closely linked to high blood-fat levels and depressed concentrations of the protective high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. Why is deep fat so hazardous? When fat cells inside your abdominal cavity release fat into the blood, the fat moves directly to your liver, where it can be transformed quickly into VLDLs and LDLs - the 'bad' fats which are associated with an increased risk of coronary artery disease. On the other hand, the fats inside your muscles and under your skin have a decent chance of being broken down by your muscles before they reach the liver. As athletes' muscles gobble up this fat, blood concentrations of HDL cholesterol tend to rise.

Are there special workouts which can enhance fat breakdown during the cooler part of the year? Basically, 60-minute bouts of exercise in nippy air, during which you attempt to push up the intensity a little rather than just poking lethargically along, are fantastic for breaking down fat, and slight adjustments in your workout schedule can also force the fat-burning fires to kindle with particular intensity.

There is no real reason to avoid cold weather training, as long as you have gradually prepared for it!

[juanlawnmower]

Originally Posted by Brad Morris

Provided you are not prone to respiratory infections cold weather training is a great option. Some studies have shown that training in the cold increases the amount of bodyfat around the internal organs.

Here is a good extract from http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/0905.htm

A unique aspect of exercising in the cold is that it can - somewhat paradoxically - produce both glycogen depletion and high rates of fat metabolism. The glycogen depletion is caused by two factors: first shivering, which causes muscles to empty their glycogen stores at 5-6 times the normal rate; secondly, increased blood levels of epinephrine (adrenaline), a hormone which stimulates glycogen breakdown.

This high rate of glycogen usage tends to empty out muscle glycogen depots, forcing muscles to turn to fat as a source of energy. Epinephrine can also enhance fat metabolism, and there is some evidence that insulin levels are lower during the winter time, an effect which could also spur fat breakdown. Thus, colder portions of the year can be an excellent time to lose weight and improve body composition, especially since the cold also tends to raise one's resting metabolic rate. Additionally, exercising in the cold is often associated with an increased energetic cost of movement which can help push you into a 'negative energy balance' (3).

There is some evidence, albeit controversial, that winter exercise not only makes a sizable dent in your fat stores, but also helps to shed your most dangerous fat - the lard which is inside your body cavities, clinging to your internal organs. It is this deep, internal fat, not the tallow perched under your skin, which is most closely linked to high blood-fat levels and depressed concentrations of the protective high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. Why is deep fat so hazardous? When fat cells inside your abdominal cavity release fat into the blood, the fat moves directly to your liver, where it can be transformed quickly into VLDLs and LDLs - the 'bad' fats which are associated with an increased risk of coronary artery disease. On the other hand, the fats inside your muscles and under your skin have a decent chance of being broken down by your muscles before they reach the liver. As athletes' muscles gobble up this fat, blood concentrations of HDL cholesterol tend to rise.

Are there special workouts which can enhance fat breakdown during the cooler part of the year? Basically, 60-minute bouts of exercise in nippy air, during which you attempt to push up the intensity a little rather than just poking lethargically along, are fantastic for breaking down fat, and slight adjustments in your workout schedule can also force the fat-burning fires to kindle with particular intensity.

There is no real reason to avoid cold weather training, as long as you have gradually prepared for it!

Interesting, I thought internal fat was a good thing, keeping your organs warm even with low subcutaneous BF.

Can anyone clear this up?

[GroundNPound]

Wear something over your mouth to avoid respiratory infection!

[Saith]

Contrary to popular belief, cold weather or getting chilled does not cause a cold, according to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). However, more colds do occur during the cold season (early fall to late winter), which is probably due to various factors, including:
schools are in session, increasing the risk for exposure to the virus
people stay more indoors and are in closer proximity to each other
low humidity, causing dry nasal passages which are more susceptible to cold viruses

http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/h...gnose/cold.htm

Just snort water every couple minutes and you'll be fine.

Edit: One website recommends a saline nasal spray, which can be purchased OTC.

[GroundNPound]

...it also helps breath easier

[Enzuguri]

It depends...I mean, how cold are we talking here? In my location it barely gets below zero degrees (celcius) and this is only usually in the very early hours of the morning before sunset and a winter afternoon can get up into the high 20's. The point i'm trying to make is that i've never trained in sub zero/snow/extremely low temperatures.

What i can tell you though is that in hotter climates, endurance performance will be reduced. This is because of a thing called cardiovascular drift. When you exercise in hot climates you are (obviously) going to sweat more. This means that water is taken from the blood and therefore you have a decrease in blood volume. What this means is that because of the decrease in the amount of blood, the heart has to pump harder to distribute it around the body. This means that you will reach your maximal heart rate at a lower intensity when compared to a cooler temperature.

Also, when you exercise in the heat, the blood vessels leading to the skin vasodilate (open up/widen) and send blood to the skin for cooling. This means that there is less blood available for the working muscles and therefore your body will fatigue quicker.

I hope this helped...I guess i'm just getting the point accross that training in heat will decrease your training performance...So its up to you to find the right temperature.