AEROBIC FITNESS AND TYPE OF RECOVERY INFLUENCE POST-EXERCISE HEART RATE RECOVERY IN YOUNG WOMEN

This study aimed to analyze both influence of aerobic fitness and active recovery in heart rate (HR) reduction after maximum exercise (i.e. maximum incremental test) in untrained young women. Seventeen women were evaluated (23.88 ± 4.85 years), divided by the medium of peak of consumption of oxygen (30.80 mL.kg-1.min-1), in higher or lower aerobic fitness obtained during a maximum incremental test performed on a cycle ergometer. The post-exercise recovery was performed actively and passively, on two randomly non-consecutive days. It was noticed that HR at 6th and from the 6th to 10th min after the passive and active recovery, respectively, was lower in the higher aerobic fitness group, beyond that, the values of %HR reduction from the 6th to 10th min at 6th min after passive and active recovery, respectively, were higher in the higher aerobic fitness group. After active recovery, HR in 8th and 9th min and %HR reduction of the 8th to 10th min were lower and higher, respectively (p<0.05) than passive recovery in the lower aerobic fitness group. In short, the aerobic fitness influenced HR reduction after maximum exercise in untrained young women, mainly, after passive recovery. Besides that, the active recovery showed benefits in HR reduction in lower aerobic fitness group.