Influence of short-term endurance exercise training on heart rate variability

Purpose: To examine the influence of 2 wk (eight sessions) of endurance training on cardiac autonomic modulation, as measured by heart rate variability (HRV). Methods: Twenty-four males (mean age: 23.1 yr) were randomized to an exercise (EX; N = 12) or control group (CT; N = 12). EX trained for eight sessions (4X wk^-1, 40 min, 80-85% HRreserve) on a cycle ergometer. ECG tracings were collected during 5 min of paced breathing (12 breaths·min^-1 (PB)), 5 min of spontaneous breathing (SB1), 5 min of 70° head-up tilt (TILT), and a second 5-min period of spontaneous breathing (SB2). Data were collected before (test 1), during (tests 2-4), and 48 h after (test 5) the 2-wk period. HRV was reported as the standard deviation of RR intervals, and as natural logarithm of the normalized units (NU) of high- and low-frequency power (InHF and InLF). Results: EX exhibited a significant increase in peak oxygen consumption (8%). During PB and TILT conditions, ANOVA revealed a group X time interaction such that EX exhibited lower InLFNU and InLF/InHF during test 5 compared with test 1. Conclusion: These data suggest that eight endurance exercise-training sessions performed over 2 wk enhance the relative vagal modulation of the heart during PB and TILT, but not during SB.