Physiological Responses to Increasing Battling Rope Weight During Two 3-Week High-Intensity Interval Training Programs

Bornath, DPD and Kenno, KA. Physiological responses to increasing battling rope weight during two 3-week high-intensity interval training programs. J Strength Cond Res 36(2): 352-358, 2022-The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of increasing battling rope weight during 6 weeks (wks) of battling rope high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on upper-body oxygen consumption and skeletal muscle strength, power, and endurance performance. Eighteen recreationally active men and 15 women (23 +/- 2 year) performed 10 x 30-second (s) bouts of all-out exercise, interchanging between double and alternating whip battling rope exercises, separated by 60 seconds of rest, 3x/wk, for 6 weeks. For the first 3 weeks, women used 40-foot, 1.5-inch diameter, 20-lb ropes and men used 50-foot, 1.5-inch diameter, 25-lb ropes, after which the battling rope weight was increased by 10 lb for a second 3-week period of battling rope HIIT. Men and women exercised at a minimum of 85% of their predicted maximum heart rate with post-exercise blood lactate concentrations peaking at 10.79 mmol center dot L-1 and 8.33 mmol center dot L-1, respectively. After 3 and 6 weeks of battling rope HIIT, men and women increased upper-body maximal oxygen consumption (V?o(2)max), maximum voluntary contraction isometric shoulder flexion and extension strength, shoulder power output, and push-up and sit-up endurance. These increases in aerobic and skeletal muscle measurements are similar to previous HIIT studies involving treadmills and cycle ergometers. Battling rope HIIT produced adaptations in skeletal muscle and aerobic performance in as little as 3 weeks, and with increases in battling rope weight displayed further improvements after 6 weeks of battling rope HIIT. These data support the implementation of battling rope HIIT to improve cardiorespiratory fitness and skeletal muscle performance with increased workloads.