On a running website, Dwain Chambers was quoted about his use of a hypoxic training device (a hypoxicator), stating that if he had had access to it however many years ago, he would not have turned to illegal performance enhancing drugs (hypoxic training devices are legal).
This instantly polarized readers, many claiming that hypoxicators are a luxury that only the rich can afford. Then, others pointed out that hypoxicators cost less than $1,500 and that moving to high altitude and returning to low altitude would easily add up to more than $1,500 in traveling expenses over a year or more.
The huge advantage of a hypoxicator with bio-feedback, it seems, is that you can live at low altitude and recover better than if at high altitude and the hypoxicator can provide you with the stress needed to stimulate increased red blood cell production and stimulate mitochondria scavenging and reproduction as if you had been at 6,000-11,000 ft in elevation. It can test to see if you are undertrained and provide more of a stimulus (less oxygen) or overtrained and lessen the ‘training load’ of hypoxic training, something that can not be done if you are stuck at 5,600+ feet in elevation. It can also provide over stimulation of oxygen to stimulate superior recovery. I’m sure plenty of exercise physiology folks will have their opinions, but check out the list of folks below who use it:
I’ll start by saying I don’t know much at all about hypoxic training. From what I’ve heard, though, it doesn’t work for eveybody. Some see great benefits, some see mild benefits, and some don’t get any benefit from it at all. I don’t know why this is, it’s just what I’ve heard in my very limited research of hypoxic training. If it works for you, though, I see it as a great way to supplement your training.
I wonder if the people who did not respond well to it were using the fancy hypoxicators with biofeedback computer programs?
I’ve heard that a lot of users - not saying user in the context that you would say an epo or heroin user - try to get that extra “edge” out of the hypoxicators and over use them/abuse them, similar to people over training at altitude. It sounds like the computer program based biofeedback system is the way to go if you are going to optimally use this training device, otherwise, you risk overtraining too easily due to over stimulation.
(hypoxic training devices are legal)
It’s legal, you said so yourself. So no, it is not cheating. Drafting is cheating.
But I assume you actually mean *should *it be cheating–aka should it be illegal.
I am sick of this debate. EPO is a performance enhancer and is illegal. Caffeine is a performance enhancer an is legal. Training at altitude is a performance enhancer (?) and it is legal. Blood doping is a performance enhancer and is illegal. There is no logical line to be drawn. Ad hoc decision making leads to idiotic regulatory structures. THERE IS NO GOOD ANSWER. Other than, perhaps, to legalize them all and let the side effects sort it out.
I did not ask if they should be illegal. I was asking if people feel that these legal devices are cheating. I have friends who feel they take away from the purity of sport.
Actually, there is a really, really clear line between the examples you provided of legal and illegal performance enhancing methods.
The body naturally responds to stress and overcompensates. This is why we train and this is why training at altitude and training with a hypoxicator are effective.
Blood Doping, EPO, HGH, THG, gene doping, testosterone… these are foreign elements being added to our bodies or extracted fluids being re-added to our bodies. These methods do not trigger the natural stress-overcompensation mechanism that is the basis for athletic improvement.
I don’t think hypoxicators should be illegal, as they only trigger natural responses in the human body, they do not skip the stress/response mechanism and just add the desired chemical, hormone, gene to your body. This is the same argument that justifies supplement use vs. PED’s.
(on blood doping: once the oxygen rich blood is extracted and stored, it becomes a foreign substance that is added to the body at a later date bypassing the natural stress/response mechanism, making it an unnatural advantage)
Maybe I was to subtle. If something is legal, it is–by definition–not cheating.
Your question was, “Is Hypoxic Training via a Hypoxinator Cheating?”
My answer: No, because it is–as you said–legal.
Your “really, really clear line” also doesn’t account for caffeine, which is a “foreign element being added to our bodies . . . .” Caffeine is legal, the line is not quite so bright.
Cheating can be subjective where as legal/illegal is definite. Many people (obviously not yourself, you have made your opinion clear) do feel it is cheating. I’m interested to hear their point of view. If they were beat by someone that used a hypoxicator, how would they feel?
Caffeine is a drug, but it is culturally accepted to such a large extent. I once trained with someone who was appalled by the fact that I did not drink coffee. it is odd. Isn’t caffeine illegal in the NCAA?
But, the line is still somewhat clear: Caffeine does not provide a physiological effect that skips a natural stress/reaction mechanism. Caffeine provide a stimulus that could be considered the same as consuming the ‘foreign elements’ of glucose, electrolytes, protein.
Cheating can be subjective where as legal/illegal is definite. Many people (obviously not yourself, you have made your opinion clear) do feel it is cheating.
Cheating is as definite as something illegal. Not sure if you have ever gone over the rules for anything, but if it is not listed as being illegal then it is legal. The same goes for cheating. If it is not spelled out in the rules it is not cheating. Someone might consider something to be cheating, but its not unless it is spelled out. Same with some thing being illegal. If it is not spelled out to be illegal, it is legal until someone changes the laws/rules.
It sure sounds like you work for the company mentioned at the beginning of the thread. Yes if I had the money I would buy a chamber.
“Someone might consider something to be cheating, but its not unless it is spelled out.”
I have friends who consider it cheating. I’m just curious. BTW, I mentioned three companies in my first post and I had never heard of a hypoxinator until the letsrun Chambers quote.
A lot of people consider neoprene pool suits cheating - their legal. Blood Doping was once legal, as was EPO, testosterone. There’s the chance that hypoxinators, swim skins will be illegal some day because they can be considered cheating - because cheating is subjective.
Question: look at the list of athletes that use hypoxinators. Most of them are known for spending time at altitude. Why live at altitude and use a hypoxinator?
I did not ask if they should be illegal. I was asking if people feel that these legal devices are cheating. I have friends who feel they take away from the purity of sport.
“The purity of the sport?” From a hypoxic training device?
Ok, from now on all athletes in all sports must train at the same altitude. Because after all, those living and training in Boulder have a natural advantage, and that’s just not a true test of athletic ability.
I’ve got no problem with people using any legal device they want to. I have no problem with anybody putting anything legal into their bodies they want to.
I don’t get into the theorizing, “yeah, but”, etc etc. If it appears on the banned list, and someone gets caught taking/using, boot 'em. If it doesn’t appear on the banned list, it’s all good.
I really think people read way too much into things, and look for every nuance of every letter.
I’m sure that’s what they said in the early 70’s and late 60’s about blood doping. When Lasse Viren won his first two gold medals, blood doping was not illegal. He was later accused of blood doping and he denied it, but with your logic, he was perfectly in the right at the time and nobody should have been upset at the possibility of him blood doping. I think that’s short sighted.
As I said before, if it doesn’t skip the natural stress/response mechanism, I don’t think it is cheating, so a hypoxicator by that definition is not cheating.
Over on letsrun, Dwain Chambers was not looked upon well for using a hypoxicator, especially when BALCO’s Victor Conte is administering it.
I was really surprised to see the list of athletes, especially triathletes, that use the hypoxicator. I’m still puzzled over why Siri Lindley, Shalane Flanagan and Bevan Docherty go to altitude AND use a hypoxicator…?
As others have said, cheating is not a subjective term. Cheating is defined as violating rules deliberately (at least that’s the most relevant definition on dictionary.com). Therefore, if something is not specifically ruled to be illegal, doing it is not cheating. Your attempts to impose your own moral judgments on others actions, or to create your own definition of the term cheating notwithstanding, using the device you mention is *currently *not cheating. If it’s ruled to be illegal tomorrow, then using it tomorrow would be cheating, but having used it today would still not be cheating.
- try to get that extra “edge” out of the hypoxicators and over use them/abuse them, similar to people over training at altitude. It sounds like the computer program based biofeedback system is the way to go if you are going to optimally use this training device, otherwise, you risk overtraining too easily due to over stimulation.