Beyond RPE: the perception of exercise under normal and ketotic conditions

<strong>Aim:</strong> Subjective perceptions of exercising exertion are integral to maintaining homeostasis. Traditional methods have utilized scores of ‘rating of perceived exertion’ (RPE) to quantify these subjective perceptions, and here we aimed to test whether RPE may encompass iden...

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Main Authors: Faull, O, Dearlove, D, Clarke, K, Cox, P
Format: Journal article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media 2019
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author Faull, O
Dearlove, D
Clarke, K
Cox, P
author_facet Faull, O
Dearlove, D
Clarke, K
Cox, P
author_sort Faull, O
collection OXFORD
description <strong>Aim:</strong> Subjective perceptions of exercising exertion are integral to maintaining homeostasis. Traditional methods have utilized scores of ‘rating of perceived exertion’ (RPE) to quantify these subjective perceptions, and here we aimed to test whether RPE may encompass identifiable localized perceptions from the lungs (breathlessness) and legs (leg discomfort), as well as their corresponding measures of anxiety. We utilized the intervention of ketoacidosis (via consumption of an exogenous ketone ester drink) to independently perturb exercise-related metabolites and humoral signals, thus allowing us to additionally identify the possible contributing physiological signals to each of these perceptions. <br/><br/> <strong>Methods:</strong> Twelve trained volunteers underwent two incremental bicycle ergometer tests to exhaustion, following ingestion of either an exogenous ketone ester or a taste-matched placebo drink. Cardiorespiratory measures, blood samples and perceived exertion scales were taken throughout. Firstly, two-way repeated-measures ANOVAs were employed to identify the overall effects of ketoacidosis, followed by generalized linear mixed model regression to isolate physiological predictors contributing to each perception. <br/><br/> <strong>Results:</strong> Rating of perceived exertion was found to contain contributions from localized perceptions of breathlessness and leg discomfort, with no measurable effect of ketoacidosis on overall exertion. Leg discomfort, anxiety of breathing and anxiety of leg discomfort were increased during ketoacidosis, and correspondingly contained pH within their prediction models. Anxiety of leg discomfort also encompassed additional humoral signals of blood glucose and ketone concentrations. <br/><br/> <strong>Conclusion:</strong> These results indicate the presence of localized components of RPE in the form of breathlessness and leg discomfort. Furthermore, subjective perceptions of anxiety appear to result from a complex interplay of humoral signals, which may be evolutionarily important when monitoring exertion under times of metabolic stress, such as during starvation.
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spelling oxford-uuid:c5d833eb-9905-4990-87e3-e2f9fbae42232022-03-27T06:33:58ZBeyond RPE: the perception of exercise under normal and ketotic conditionsJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:c5d833eb-9905-4990-87e3-e2f9fbae4223EnglishSymplectic Elements at OxfordFrontiers Media2019Faull, ODearlove, DClarke, KCox, P<strong>Aim:</strong> Subjective perceptions of exercising exertion are integral to maintaining homeostasis. Traditional methods have utilized scores of ‘rating of perceived exertion’ (RPE) to quantify these subjective perceptions, and here we aimed to test whether RPE may encompass identifiable localized perceptions from the lungs (breathlessness) and legs (leg discomfort), as well as their corresponding measures of anxiety. We utilized the intervention of ketoacidosis (via consumption of an exogenous ketone ester drink) to independently perturb exercise-related metabolites and humoral signals, thus allowing us to additionally identify the possible contributing physiological signals to each of these perceptions. <br/><br/> <strong>Methods:</strong> Twelve trained volunteers underwent two incremental bicycle ergometer tests to exhaustion, following ingestion of either an exogenous ketone ester or a taste-matched placebo drink. Cardiorespiratory measures, blood samples and perceived exertion scales were taken throughout. Firstly, two-way repeated-measures ANOVAs were employed to identify the overall effects of ketoacidosis, followed by generalized linear mixed model regression to isolate physiological predictors contributing to each perception. <br/><br/> <strong>Results:</strong> Rating of perceived exertion was found to contain contributions from localized perceptions of breathlessness and leg discomfort, with no measurable effect of ketoacidosis on overall exertion. Leg discomfort, anxiety of breathing and anxiety of leg discomfort were increased during ketoacidosis, and correspondingly contained pH within their prediction models. Anxiety of leg discomfort also encompassed additional humoral signals of blood glucose and ketone concentrations. <br/><br/> <strong>Conclusion:</strong> These results indicate the presence of localized components of RPE in the form of breathlessness and leg discomfort. Furthermore, subjective perceptions of anxiety appear to result from a complex interplay of humoral signals, which may be evolutionarily important when monitoring exertion under times of metabolic stress, such as during starvation.
spellingShingle Faull, O
Dearlove, D
Clarke, K
Cox, P
Beyond RPE: the perception of exercise under normal and ketotic conditions
title Beyond RPE: the perception of exercise under normal and ketotic conditions
title_full Beyond RPE: the perception of exercise under normal and ketotic conditions
title_fullStr Beyond RPE: the perception of exercise under normal and ketotic conditions
title_full_unstemmed Beyond RPE: the perception of exercise under normal and ketotic conditions
title_short Beyond RPE: the perception of exercise under normal and ketotic conditions
title_sort beyond rpe the perception of exercise under normal and ketotic conditions
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