Could there be benefits to training in the cold?
Training at 1ºC this morning felt a heady combination of slightly mad, slightly dangerous (there was ice) and yet slightly delicious. I know I got benefit from doing the training but did I gain anything extra as a result of training in the cold? One researcher thinks there might be.
A Canadian, Dominique Gagnon, who is now based at the University of Helsinki thinks that training in the cold might bring about mitochondrial adaptations. He’s presented some preliminary findings from his latest research, which I’ve copied below:
Recent evidence suggests an increase in whole-body and skeletal muscle lipid metabolism in colder environments during acute exercise. Different metabolic requirements and increased reliance on oxidative metabolism during prolonged training may have an influence on mitochondrial respiratory pathways and adaptive responses. This study investigated whether training in the cold would be superior in increasing mitochondrial oxidative content compared to a thermoneutral environment.
Thirty-four healthy men and women (18-30 yrs old) took part in seven weeks of HIIT training cycling consisting of one long (3 to 4 times 5-7 min), one medium (4-10 times 2 min), and one short (6 to 12 times 40 s) training session each week, where the duration and repetitions increased every two weeks. Training was conducted in themoneutral (NT, 25°C, n = 19) or cold (COLD, 0°C, n = 15) environmental conditions. Muscle biopsies were collected before and 72-96 hrs post training interventions and mitochondrial complexes protein levels (total OXHOS and CI-CV) were analysed.
The participants in the cold exposure group had an increase in total level of mitochondrial complexes (OXPHOS) and in individual complexes I, III and IV (p≤0.035). In the thermoneutral group there was an increase in the level of complex III only (p=0.021).
This is the first study to examine mitochondrial adaptive responses following training in a cold environment. The results suggest that cold temperature during exercise may potentially be an ergogenic tool in improve mitochondrial respiratory complexes and ultimately mitochondrial health. Whether this could serve metabolically-impaired populations remain to be investigated.
This research is fascinating and certainly makes riding in the cold winter months so much more bearable mentally to think that we may be getting additional benefits by doing so.