SOME OBSERVATIONS OF THE EFFECTS OF TRAINING ON PULSE RATE, BLOOD PRESSURE AND ENDURANCE, IN HUMANS, USING THE STEP TEST (HARVARD), TREADMILL AND ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE BICYCLE ERGOMETER

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Abstract
The Harvard step test, treadmill and bicycle ergometer were used as physical performance tests for 7 conscientious objectors working on a nutritional expt. These men were trained rapidly in order to pass the training peak before the exptl. mental phase was begun (i.e. testing 3 times a wk. for all tests but the treadmill). Post-exercise pulse rates, systolic and diastolic (1 minute) post-exercise blood pressures decreased significantly with training, as did resting systolic pressure. Also diastolic pressure 1 min. following each test decreased markedly over resting pressure, but returned to resting level in 3 mins. Significant correlations between resting and post-exercise pulse rates in the subjects undergoing training were found, indicating that men having higher than avg. resting rates tended to have higher than avg. post-exercise rates, and men having resting rates higher than their own avg. and that of the group for a given day had similar increases in post-exercise rates. The effect of load on duration of effort on the treadmill and ergometer suggests that training rate is also affected by load that changes in load in either direction about an optimum decrease in rate. In healthy young subjects, a sound synchronous with pulse was heard over the brachial artery up to 2 min. post-exercise, tending to give a false impression of actual diastolic pressure, unless the 4th phase of auscultatory sound is designated as representing the diastolic pressure.