Oxygen Mask in the Gym

mwadfry · Jan 30, 2015

They carry these masks at Dick's now so we can look forward to every d-bag walking around the gym with one of these.

Warrior Man · Jan 30, 2015

PitbullTank said:
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

Lmao takes you back to where you see the guys benching on the squat rack lol same concept

OuchThatHurts · Jan 30, 2015

cerberus said:
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.

I'm not sure why you would acclimate more quickly. Maybe it is much easier to take more breaths per minute? That would be worth a study. Could be worth something to climbers. You are exactly right though. This device is taking advantage of people that don't know WHY low atmospheric pressure prevents a person from getting enough oxygen and why this mask can't possibly simulate lower atmospheric pressure. When you expand your chest cavity, you greatly decrease the air pressure in your lungs (create a vacuum) and the air around you which has more pressure allows air to flow into your lungs to fill that vacuum. For example, when an airplane suddenly depressurizes, you suffocate not just because of low oxygen but because the cabin is no longer pressurized and when you inflate your chest cavity, there is simply not enough air pressure around you to allow air to flow into your lungs and give you enough oxygen. In a sense, at altitude, the atmosphere is already more vacuous with reduced pressure. Reducing pressure in your lungs doesn't give you enough O2. That's why O2 masks drop down from the ceiling so you can artificially increase O2 until pressure is regained or you die (whichever happens first).

Just restricting air flow to your lungs at normal altitudes with a mask will just make it harder for your diaphragm and intercostals and probably make you feel weaker. Might be a good respiratory workout but I would never train that way. If I lived at altitude, where my HbG was already higher, I would rather go down to sea level to train and then return home. If you lived at sea level, going to a higher altitude for a short workout would be worthless. You'd have to have time to become fully acclimated to that altitude.

You could do this without looking like a Mortal Combat villian by just putting something elastic around your rib cage while you train like one of those worthless weightloss sweat bands.

Kaladryn · Jan 30, 2015

The problem is, red blood cells are stimulated from the amount of TIME you spend in lower oxygen, not the fact that you are working out in low oxygen. Working out ALREADY stimulates more RBCs because you are starving yourself for oxygen (interval training works best).

Then there is the fact that you can't train as hard while oxygen starved, making the small increase in RBCs from lower oxygen for an hour or two MUCH less effective than spending your time NOT training in lower oxygen.

All high level endurance athletes know it: LIVE in low oxygen, TRAIN with normal oxygen. So start wearing those masks everywhere you go! lol

bigboy101 · Jan 30, 2015

EPO=RBC

yes I agree looks silly but maybe he is a serious rock climber!

Crod2666 · Jan 30, 2015

[lang=vi]I have done boxing and mma training wearing this mask and its bruddle. It makes you feel like your breathing through a straw. Then when you take it off, it makes it feel like your able to breath so much easier[/lang]

EL DIABLO · Jan 30, 2015

I fought professional MMA, and a great friend/teammate was one of the first to be sponsored by "Training Mask" probably 6yrs ago or so...along with Shawn Sherk. The guy who started this first bought military surplus gas masks cheap in bulk, and drilled out adapters he made to fit them with holes that plugged for different air flow....very primitive and cheap. The idea took off and with some exposure today it has become what it has....big time. I have never trained with one to give comment, but they were used regularly by many guys. Guy hit the jackpot on it...

OuchThatHurts · Jan 30, 2015

EL DIABLO said:
I fought professional MMA, and a great friend/teammate was one of the first to be sponsored by "Training Mask" probably 6yrs ago or so...along with Shawn Sherk. The guy who started this first bought military surplus gas masks cheap in bulk, and drilled out adapters he made to fit them with holes that plugged for different air flow....very primitive and cheap. The idea took off and with some exposure today it has become what it has....big time. I have never trained with one to give comment, but they were used regularly by many guys. Guy hit the jackpot on it...

Yup just a money-making gimmick. Unless the mask is air-tight and somehow decreases atmospheres inside the mask, worthless. Even if it did do that, you'd have to wear it constantly over some acclimatization period (a week, at least, probably much longer) and then TAKE IT OFF to train. SMH

Jerry2222 · Jan 30, 2015

Looks like a cup, lol. Got balls rolling into the gym looking like a cross between Bane and a guy with a cup strapped to his face.

Marvin Martian · Jan 30, 2015

You humans have some strange methods.. Try breathing where I am from!!

RunNPump · Jan 31, 2015

Fighters who cannot train high altitude swear by them. It's for cardio/endurance training, not strength. It's stupid to wear it in the weight gym unless you're doing cardio. Guys wear it in the Kempo dojo I train at. Personally I'm not there yet.

OuchThatHurts · Jan 31, 2015

runnpump said:
Fighters who cannot train high altitude swear by them. It's for cardio/endurance training, not strength. It's stupid to wear it in the weight gym unless you're doing cardio. Guys wear it in the Kempo dojo I train at. Personally I'm not there yet.

If you wanted to train your best, you would restrict your air flow. It's just going to reduce your performance. If you want to increase your endurance with a mask, you'd have to wear it constantly, then take it off to get your ass kicked.