The secret behind the endless stamina that keeps kids playing is revealed
We often see children running around and playing for hours, even though they don't have the physical strength of adults. Research by Associate Professor Sébastien Ratel of the University of Auvergne and his colleagues has shown that the source of children's seemingly endless energy is generated by endurance that is greater than that of adult athletes competing in national competitions.
Frontiers | Metabolic and Fatigue Profiles Are Comparable Between Prepubertal Children and Well-Trained Adult Endurance Athletes | Physiology
Children are as fit as endurance athletes -- ScienceDaily
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/04/180424083907.htm
Regarding children's resilience, the research team stated, 'Not only do children have muscles that are less likely to tire, but they also recover quickly from high-intensity exercise. Their recovery speed exceeds not only that of adults, but also that of adult athletes who regularly engage in high-intensity exercise.'
In a previous study, Associate Professor Ratel and his colleagues suggested that 'children fatigue less easily than sedentary adults, and therefore may be comparable in ability to athletes who play endurance sports.' However, they were unable to prove whether children's endurance is in fact on par with that of adult athletes.
In addition, children's circulatory systems are not as developed as adults', so they tend to tire more quickly than adults. For this reason, when children travel long distances on their own, they need to take breaks at regular intervals. In the end, they need more breaks than adults, which shows that their physical abilities are not necessarily superior.
However, children also have the characteristic of having muscles that do not tire easily and the ability to recover from fatigue, even when performing high-intensity exercise. The research team therefore decided to examine issues that could not be addressed in previous studies, thinking that 'this characteristic overcomes the physical constraints of the cardiovascular system's capacity. This capacity should be equal to or greater than that of not only adults but also athletes.'
The research team recruited 12 healthy boys aged 8 to 12 years (boy group), 12 sedentary male university students aged 19 to 23 years (university group), and 13 athletic men aged 19 to 27 years (athlete group).
The male athletes in the athlete group were long-distance runners, triathletes, and cyclists, all of whom were nationally competitive. Each group performed aerobic and anaerobic exercise using an exercise bike, and the participants' heart rates, blood oxygen levels, and lactate removal rates were monitored to see how fatigued they became during exercise and how quickly they recovered afterward.
In terms of fatigue, the university students who do not exercise regularly showed the most fatigue. It was also confirmed that the boys' group showed the same level of fatigue as the athletes' group. And when examining the speed of recovery after exercise, from when the heart rate returned to normal to when lactate was removed from the blood, the boys' group came in first, surpassing the athletes' group.
'Because the children used aerobic metabolism like marathon runners, they became less fatigued during high-intensity exercise,' said Associate Professor Ratel. 'They also had a better ability to recover their heart rate and remove lactate from the blood, which shows that they have a greater ability to recover than athletes.'
'This high level of endurance may be the reason why children are able to play for long periods of time,' says Associate Professor Ratel.
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