The effect of aerobic exercise with and without neuromuscular electrical stimulation on acute cardiovascular responses between biological sexes.
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Abstract
High-intensity aerobic exercise is associated with various health benefits. Unfortunately, high-intensity exercises can be contraindicated and has barriers to participation depending on health conditions. These drawbacks could be mitigated using neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES). Current literature has shown that the addition of NMES to upper leg skeletal musculature during moderate-intensity aerobic exercise can increase the physiological responses associated with exercise intensity. It has been suggested that NMES can be used to assist the elevation of cardiovascular responses to help people reach cardiovascular responses similar to high-intensity exercise. Unfortunately, it’s unknown if the effects of NMES are the same or different between the biological sexes. The purpose of this research was to explore the acute cardiovascular responses between two conditions which included: 1) moderate-intensity cycle ergometer exercise; and 2) moderate-intensity cycle ergometer exercise with NMES. Mean values of respiratory exchange ratio, oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide production, heart rate, kilocalories utilized, substrate utilization and rating of perceived exertion were all collected. The data was compared across conditions and biological sexes. It was hypothesized that NMES with moderate-intensity aerobic exercise would have significantly higher cardiovascular responses than moderate-intensity aerobic exercise without NMES in both biological sexes. Results of the present study (n=20) went against the hypotheses with no statistically significant differences between the two conditions on acute cardiovascular responses (p > 0.05). No significant interactions between biological sex and condition in acute cardiovascular responses were noted (p > 0.05). Potential reasons for this are NMES intensity, study design, and antagonist muscle stimulation. In conclusion, in a young, healthy, physically active population there were no significant interactions between the two conditions and biological sex. The present study did not demonstrate any significant differences in cardiovascular responses between conditions. Males and females seem to have a similar subjective response to NMES when paired with aerobic exercise based on the results from the present study, but further research is required to confirm if there are any biological sex differences in acute cardiovascular responses when ideal conditions are met to see increased cardiovascular responses.