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Acid-base balance and subjective feelings of fatigue during physical exercise

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Abstract

Six trained male subjects performed exercise on a bicycle ergometer. The external load was increased every minute by 10 watt until exhaustion. The subjects quantified their subjective feeling of fatigue by means of a rating scale.

Parameters of acid-base balance (pH, \(p_{CO_2 } \)) were determined in arterial blood from the a. brachialis.

Correction of the acidaemia by infusion of NaHCO3 (8%) during exercise had no effect upon the subjective feeling of fatigue, and except for carbon dioxide output no effect upon some important physiological functions (heart rate, blood pressure, ventilation, and oxygen consumption) during submaximal and maximal exercise.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Coronel Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    A. J. Poulus, H. J. Docter & H. G. Westra

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  1. A. J. Poulus
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  2. H. J. Docter
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  3. H. G. Westra
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Poulus, A.J., Docter, H.J. & Westra, H.G. Acid-base balance and subjective feelings of fatigue during physical exercise. Europ. J. Appl. Physiol. 33, 207–213 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00421148

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00421148

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