AEROBIC WORK CAPACITY IN SEDENTARY MEN AND ACTIVE ATHLETES IN ISRAEL

Abstract

Maximal O2 uptake (.ovrhdot.VO2 max) was estimated in 1200 sedentary men aged 18-50 yr and in 400 active athletes aged 18-30 yr participating in 10 different kinds of sport. The .ovrhdot.VO2 max in the 18-30 yr old sedentary group was 34.3 .+-. 9.7 (SD) ml .cntdot. kg-1 .cntdot. min-1, and in the 31-40 and 41-50 yr age groups, a similar value of 28.1 .+-. 9.9 ml .cntdot. kg-1 .cntdot. min-1 was recorded. The results in the sedentary group were lower than those recorded in active populations in other countries by 20-40%, possibly due to lack of physical activity. The mean .ovrhdot.VO2 max in 400 active athletes was 54.8 .+-. 10.0 ml .cntdot. kg-1 .cntdot. min-1, which is very similar to .ovrhdot.VO2 max values recorded in active populations in other countries. The difference between the mean .ovrhdot.VO2 max of the 18-30 yr old sedentary group and that of the active one was significant (P < 0.005). The highest mean .ovrhdot.VO2 max values among the athletes were recorded in the group of long-distance runners (60.8 ml .cntdot. kg-1 .cntdot. min-1) and cyclists (61.9 ml .cntdot. kg-1 .cntdot. min-1), while unexpectedly low mean .ovrhdot.VO2 max values were recorded in the group of swimmers (50.1 .+-. 8.1 ml .cntdot. kg-1 .cntdot. min-1) and football players (51.7 U 9.1 ml .cntdot. kg-1 .cntdot. min-1).