Oxygen Mask in the Gym

[Ghetto Gunfighter]

Pussies. Wear a gas mask with canister.

Yep. And a rucksack on the treadmill.

 

[pieguy]

at my gym there are a few fire fighters that dress up and workout ... i personally think its to get chicks but whatever.

They run into burning buildings to save us. They can do w/e the hell they want if it gets them some tail as far as I'm concerned

 

[Google&Pubmed]

A guy at my gym use to wear it a year ago and just run with it. I would want to wear just to see how it is but nothing else.

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[swim15]

Ive done this. I was a swimmer with a international level club team and trained with a lot of D1/olympic athletes. We used snorkels to simulate training at altitude and I have worn a snorkel in the gym before when preparing to travel/train somewhere at a high altitude.

Once you get to the point where you can bust your ass just as hard with a snorkel as without it, it is a massive training advantage.

 

[ThinkTank]

If there was no benefit to this type of training the Olympic team wouldn't train in Colorado Springs in the high elevation.

...And I would bet that more "rappers" than Olympic athletes train at your gym

It is stupid to see Joe Average using one of those masks while doing dumbbell flyes.

 

[GS]

And to think most people thought we where crazy when we used oxygen back stage after our attempts at power lifting meets.
I don't understand why you would need it while doing a workout or cardio??
Who knows look at how many don't understand what we do

 

[gulfcoast]

When traveling to Colorado you can definitely tell the difference in O2 density. Try climbing one of their mountains and you will look like a pussy. All because of the low O2. This mask's purpose is to mimic low O2 as others above have posted. Training in low O2 sends signals for the body to produce more O2 carrying capabilities. Then when the athlete returns to normal sea level the person can process greater O2 and therefor perform better. I do think the mask is gimmicky as a person should spend 24/7 in low O2 to actually trigger the body to respond. And really. Who the hell wants to wear a mask to the gym. Could you really imagine working out in front of a hot chick or running into an old friend with that thing on. Good grief.

Exactly - first time I went to Colorado was in the fall. I consider myself healthy, in good shape and do cardio 3-4 Xs every week.

Woke up the first morning, looked out the window and thought that walking up the mountain bike trail under the ski lift would be a great cardio workout.

I might have made it 200 yards and I was doubled over and literally gasping for air. lol

 

[james caan]

Its odd how judgmental some in our community can be. Some see wearing one of these masks as silly, ridiculous, just a trend, etc. As if hanging chains off your neck for example, wont look just as silly to the avg gym goer. We would argue that the chains offer us benefits, well im sure those that use these masks feel the same. Ive actually thought about using one of these devices, in hopes of improving my long distance bike rides.

 

[alfresco]

Xenon, breathe it in

An obscure gas improves athletes’ performance , Feb 8th 2014 | From The Economist print edition

XENON is one of the shyest members of the periodic table of the elements. Chemically, it is almost inert,
and physically, it makes up only 0.000009% of the atmosphere, so it is not surprising that it was among
the last of the naturally occurring elements to be identified, in 1898. Biologically, however, it is not shy
at all. In some countries, notably Russia, it is used as an anaesthetic. It is also known to protect body tissues
from the effects of low temperatures, lack of oxygen and even physical trauma. In particular, it increases
levels of erythropoietin, also known as EPO, a hormone that encourages the formation of red blood cells.

Xenon’s protective and EPO-boosting properties mean it is being investigated as a treatment for babies
whose brains have accidentally been starved of oxygen during birth, and of adults who have had heart
attacks. But it is also, in Russia, being used as a way to improve athletic performance.

Xenon works its magic by activating production of a protein called Hif-1 alpha. This acts as a transcription
factor: a chemical switch that turns on production of a variety of other proteins, one of which is EPO.
Artificially raising levels of EPO, by injecting synthetic versions of the hormone or by taking so-called
Hif stabilisers (drugs that discourage the breakdown of Hif-1 alpha), is illegal under the rules of the
World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Other methods of boosting the hormone, however, are permissible—
and that fact has not gone unnoticed by the Russian sports authorities. Athletes are allowed to live or
train at altitude, or sleep in a low-oxygen tent, in order to stimulate red-cell production. If xenon
treatment is merely replicating low-oxygen environments by replacing oxygen with xenon, then its
use to enhance athletic performance is permissible.

The use of xenon by athletes certainly has government blessing. A document produced in 2010 by the
State Research Institute of the Ministry of Defence sets out guidelines for the administration of the
gas to athletes. It advises using it before competitions to correct listlessness and sleep disruption,
and afterwards to improve physical recovery. The recommended dose is a 50:50 mixture of xenon
and oxygen, inhaled for a few minutes, ideally before going to bed. The gas’s action, the manual
states, continues for 48-72 hours, so repeating every few days is a good idea. And for last-minute jitters,
a quick hit an hour before the starting gun can help.

The benefits, the manual suggests, include increasing heart and lung capacity, preventing muscle fatigue,
boosting testosterone and improving an athlete’s mood. Similar benefits have been noted in papers in
Russian scientific journals, and in conference presentations describing tests of xenon on mountain climbers,
paddlers, soldiers and pilots.

And the gas appears to have been used in past Olympics. The website of Atom Medical Centre, a Russian
medical-xenon producer, cites national honours the company received for its efforts in preparing athletes
for the 2004 summer Olympics and the 2006 winter games.

Something the published Russian reports do not go into, however, are measurements of EPO or Hif-1 alpha.
Yet animal studies elsewhere have demonstrated xenon’s dramatic effects on both. One such, carried out
in 2009 by Mervyn Maze at Imperial College, London, found that exposing mice to a mixture of 70% xenon
and 30% oxygen for two hours more than doubled the animals’ EPO levels a day later. Another, by Xiaoqiang
Ding of Fudan University in Shanghai, found that Hif-1 alpha levels in mice stayed high for up to 48 hours
after treatment. By contrast, mice put in a low-oxygen enclosure saw an EPO increase that lasted less than
two hours.

Similar physiological effects may take place in people. In healthy adults, two hours in a low-oxygen
chamber raises EPO levels by 50%, and the effect disappears (as in mice) within a few hours. The Russian
manual indicates, by contrast, that xenon’s benefits last for days—as might be expected if they were
caused by the sort of Hif-1 alpha response seen in mice.

Whether xenon treatment will pass muster if and when WADA scrutinises it remains to be seen—
and will no doubt depend on the finer points of the gas’s biological action, many of which are still muddy.
In the meantime, sports trainers around the world might be tempted to follow Russia’s example, and reap
xenon’s benefits before the regulators catch up.

 

[johnjuanb1]

My gym is big into MMA. I've seen a couple guys wearing these. Some do their weight workouts with mouth guards in. I'd imagine to get used to training with less oxygen. Looks like Hannibal facial restraint. I'd imagine it would make for a very difficult and uncomfortable workout.

 

[tattoo449]

at my gym there are a few fire fighters that dress up and workout ... i personally think its to get chicks but whatever.

I'm a firefighter. Yep, It's to get the chicks. Or look like an idiot. One of the two.

 

[rock75]

My gym is big into MMA. I've seen a couple guys wearing these. Some do their weight workouts with mouth guards in. I'd imagine to get used to training with less oxygen. Looks like Hannibal facial restraint. I'd imagine it would make for a very difficult and uncomfortable workout.

That's the fundamental idea, get the most out of the training and when it's time for the real deal you are able to power through and overcome being tired and out of breath.

 

[scrapper13]

Most guys using the elevation masks are using them incorrectly. The point of them is to strengthen the muscles involved in breathing. By wearing the mask and practicing the proper belly breathing technique you strengthen the breathing muscles and allow them to expand further. When your breathing muscles expand further it allows your lungs to expand further as well, in turn creating a larger surface area in the lung to absorb oxygen into the blood stream. You see a lot of guys wearing them running and working out, all this is gonna do is restrict air flow and tire you out faster. There are specific workouts designed to get the benefits of the mask.

 

[PitbullTank]

having seen guys train in pure athlete gyms for world title fights never using anything like this, then thinking about some guys running around LA fitness with this on and doing dips and shit is kinda funny to me... whatever people wanna do is on them tho, ill just go about my training lol

 

[lucky1]

Sick video of wanderlai silva training with a mask. [ame]http://youtu.be/HKmte76XV7c[/ame]



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[Marvin Martian]

Pussies. Wear a gas mask with canister.

Then wait until the gas comes and take that bitch off and INHALE... That bring back fond memories??

 

[Marvin Martian]

Its odd how judgmental some in our community can be. Some see wearing one of these masks as silly, ridiculous, just a trend, etc. As if hanging chains off your neck for example, wont look just as silly to the avg gym goer. We would argue that the chains offer us benefits, well im sure those that use these masks feel the same. Ive actually thought about using one of these devices, in hopes of improving my long distance bike rides.

Wearing thick chains is cool though!!

 

[OuchThatHurts]

Oxygen deprivation training increases RBC, it's a form of "natural" doping.

Here is the problem with it: you can't train as hard.

You want to LIVE with low oxygen (high altitude) but TRAIN with normal oxygen (sea level). This is by far the most effective method. This is why athletes use low oxygen houses to simulate this.

Nike Oregon Project - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The reality is, this is pure doping, and could potentially cause an athlete to fail a doping test (because they use RBC profiles).

OMG! Kaladryn please come back to the board! I need your brain with these subjects that display a complete lack of cerebral ridges.

 

[cerberus]

AMAZING tool for conditioning your intercostal muscles and diaphragm and increasing lung capacity BUT!!!! PLEASE don't think that this ACTUALLY simulates being at elevation. At sea level, you can't reduce the percentage or the partial pressure of oxygen you're getting (at least not without being in a chamber). This does limit the AMOUNT (volume) of air you take in with each breath, but you're still breathing 21% oxygen at a partial pressure of 160 mmHg. Only being at altitude where the partial pressure and percentage of oxygen is reduced will cause you to become polycythemic (produce more red blood cells) and increase your body's oxygen carrying capability. Again, this is AWESOME at increasing your lung capacity, cardio efficiency and forcing you to engage muscles that are rarely thought of, but you will NOT change your actual cellular physiology. Only being at altitude or in a chamber can do that.

That being said, I work at sea level for 5 weeks at a time and I train with this mask. When I return home to the foothills in Colorado (abt 7800') for my 5 weeks off, I do notice a marked reduction in my acclimatization time. I also notice a significant difference in the ease of my breathing when training / running without the mask.

 

[MrRaxx]

Must be the latest trend. Between that and the beats headphones.

i see both at my gym and I do not know which is more ridiculous.

I thought Beats by Dre were ridiculous as well, until I ran into these bad boys:

**broken link removed**

They had me at sweat resistant and wireless.