Altitude generators

Triathlon Forum
1

i’m considering buying an “altitude generator” ie a machine that creates simulated altitude by removing oxygen from the air. there seem to be a few different models around, each marketed by a few different companies, with a number of options for around US$2000

i think i would use it for intermittent hypoxic exposure while sitting in front of the tv in the evenings. to me, that seems the best way as it avoids the potential sleep quality impairment of sleep hoods and low oxygen sleeping and allows normal training.

quality research seems to be surprisingly thin but there is evidence that intermittent hypoxic exposure is beneficial for athletes.

i did some IHE a few years ago when there was a clinic nearby but found the cost and time prohibitive as it was then taking time out of my day. i did think it was beneficial, though no real evidence behind that.

does anyone have any experience with the practical use of affordable at home machines and/or some meaningful expertise on the benefits of IHE?

2

Hello pk1 and All,

This is so old it has whiskers (about 18 years) … but some of the links still work … so there must have been some business for the companies over the years.

https://www.runnersweb.com/running/altitude_training.html

3

Interesting topic as it seems to have gone out of fashion compared to say fifteen years ago where all the top pros were endorsing altitude tents.

A Scottish company started making a revamped app-based rebreather (a device that filters the air using chemicals rather than a machine) a couple of years ago but they seem to have disappeared. I don’t know whether the older rebreathers are still on sale. Reviews were very mixed.

There is a ‘cheap’ Chinese device that is being sold in Denmark as http://caresport.dk/shop/care-altitude-ca5000-185p.html and in the UK as https://affinityaltitude.com/products/. You can search for the source but they don’t have much information on the page that I found, but that would be close to US$1,500 for the generator, head tent and o2 finger meter. Maybe cheaper if there was a slowtwitch bulk buy.

It would be interesting to know whether the cost/benefit has now made these devices worthwhile, or at least cheaper to hire, but I’d still rather ride in the Alps for a week.

SteveMc

4

yeah, pro cyclists certainly still believe in altitude training and it seems it is now actually feasible to do at home for those of us unable to go to high mountains but nobody is really advertising this which makes me wonder
.

5

Possibly because you need to train and leverage altitude. Altitude on its own might boost your blood but the effect will be minimal without training. The cost was prohibitive fifteen years ago, and being endorsed by pro triathletes living in Boulder was obviously silly. I think you’re correct in surmising that cyclists have refined the use of altitude and brought it back into favour as part of a cohesive scientific protocol and not just as an add-on.

Both Sebastian Kienle and Lisa Norden seem to be applying this approach at the moment. Seb is in Livigno gearing up before heading to Hawaii, while I think Lisa is racing 70.3 Vichy this weekend and has been in Font Romeu, but she has also spent time with the Norwegian squad in various high altitude camps. They both seem to be using it in a targeted manner. It’ll be interesting to see whether both of these pros shine in their respective A races. Ryf and Spirig obviously use altitude as they’re based most of the year in St Moritz.

For the average age-grouper who is trying to cram in what they can, I doubt an altitude tent would be a sensible purchase. Your sleep suffers so it’s an added stress that needs to be managed. Good old fashioned miles is what most of us need, especially if longer distances races are the focus. However if you’re close to your potential then these devices might get you the sought after PB.

I don’t think there is much useful advice out there on how to optimise training as an age grouper with an altitude tent.

SteveMc

6

I used to have a sponsor for the altitude tent. They all use a very similar generator and it’s made by one of two companies (or so I’m told)

That said it’s a very long winded answer to if it “will work” for you or it won’t.

First… one is an “adapter” or they are a “non-adapter”.
Clearly the adapter is one who’s hematocrit and hemoglobin is improved by sleeping in the tent and the non-adapter is one who’s blood values are not improved by it, or just not as highly. There are well known pros who are non-adapters just won’t name names.

When you find out if you’re an adapter or not, the adaption period is VERY long, typically 8-weeks. You get your blood checked to see if the values raise or not.

Then, after finding out if you adapt or not and your body responds to the tent, you’ve got to setup a plan, it’s not “set it at 10,000 feet and deal with it” type thing.

For argument’s sake lets assume for this example the individual is an “adapter” and lives at 500 feet above sea level (therefore maximizing the benefit of live high and train low).

You lay in the tent at night (which is really not fun, and the sleep really sucks until you get VERY used to it) and measure your oxygen saturation. That said there’s specific numbers you have to keep to so you get the highest response from your body, and everyone is different so I won’t mention specifics here.

That will change over time, so one night you sleep at say 5,000 feet, then after a period the body will adapt and then re-adjust the tent altitude to make sure the oxygen saturation is at the correct levels.

All of this for the entire 8-week period, and you have to test the blood regularly to make sure your levels are rising.

After the 8-week period the lasting effects are between 2-3 weeks at most, then the effects die.

Will it make you faster? If your body is adapter, yes, but I would suggest riding more and losing useless mass as a way to make ones self faster first.

7

Possibly because you need to train and leverage altitude. Altitude on its own might boost your blood but the effect will be minimal without training. The cost was prohibitive fifteen years ago, and being endorsed by pro triathletes living in Boulder was obviously silly. I think you’re correct in surmising that cyclists have refined the use of altitude and brought it back into favour as part of a cohesive scientific protocol and not just as an add-on.

Both Sebastian Kienle and Lisa Norden seem to be applying this approach at the moment. Seb is in Livigno gearing up before heading to Hawaii, while I think Lisa is racing 70.3 Vichy this weekend and has been in Font Romeu, but she has also spent time with the Norwegian squad in various high altitude camps. They both seem to be using it in a targeted manner. It’ll be interesting to see whether both of these pros shine in their respective A races. Ryf and Spirig obviously use altitude as they’re based most of the year in St Moritz.

For the average age-grouper who is trying to cram in what they can, I doubt an altitude tent would be a sensible purchase. Your sleep suffers so it’s an added stress that needs to be managed. Good old fashioned miles is what most of us need, especially if longer distances races are the focus. However if you’re close to your potential then these devices might get you the sought after PB.

I don’t think there is much useful advice out there on how to optimise training as an age grouper with an altitude tent.

SteveMc

Why does your sleep suffer?

8

Because you are sleeping in a small tent?

.

9

Because you are sleeping in a small tent?

You had one and it negatively effected your sleep?

I go camping and sleep in a tiny tent no problem

10

Lots of research out on low quality of sleep at altitude (http://www.jneuro.com/neurology-neuroscience/travelling-to-high-altitudes-lead-to-difficultsleeping-review.php?aid=7883), but also the tent becomes hot and humid, damp even. Along with the nosy air filtering machine.

SteveMc

11

Interesting article on sleep… didn’t know the stuff about sleep cycles and periodic breathing.

Based on my experience, it takes some getting used to, but after a week or so, becomes a normal part of the routine.

I bought an altitude generator a few months ago, and I will admit that I was a bit horrified at how much noise it made the first time I turned it on! Definitely didn’t sleep well the first few nights, but within a week I got used to it.

Also, if we are having a heat wave, I won’t turn it on, because then it gets really hot and stuffy. But except for those few weeks in the summer, it’s not an issue. (I live in Boston, so most of the year it’s plenty cold around here.)

I think it has made some difference in improving my times, although there are a lot of different variables at play. I have also been doing more speed work (as opposed to long, slow distance) and eating healthier, so hard to say how much of the improvement is due to the tent.

Cheers,
Ginger

12

Hello pk1 and All,

Is heat therapy the new altitude training?

https://www.outsideonline.com/2337621/heat-therapy-performance-research

Excerpt:

"But plasma volume isn’t the only parameter that heat changes. According to Meylan, psychological resilience and altered perception of high temperatures are among the key benefits his players received from heat training. That, in part, is why Canada’s women’s soccer team will likely head to southern Spain or Portugal right before next summer’s World Cup, which will take place in France.

More generally, heat is a shock to the system, generating some of the same cellular responses that exercise and altitude do. For that reason, scientists are now studying its therapeutic benefits (see “The Sweat Cure,” below), as well as cross-adaptation, the idea that heat training might prepare you for a trip to high elevations, or help you maintain an edge when you return.

A practical example: Last year, three elite steeplechasers visited Minson’s lab three or four times a week to soak in a 105-degree hot tub for roughly 40 minutes, hoping the heat would help sustain the elevated red-blood-cell levels they’d developed during altitude training in Flagstaff, Arizona. Blood tests suggested the approach worked."