NCT06467656

The UBC Long-distance Triathlon Adaptation Study

• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 60 (estimated)
• Sponsor: University of British Columbia · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 19 Years – 39 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of 12-months of individualized endurance-training (swimming, cycling and running) on physiological and psychological adaptations in exercise naïve individuals. Due to the potential seasonal changes that naturally occur in individuals across a year (even without training) the investigators will also compare the exercise-trained group to a time-aligned control group.

Detailed description

Endurance training is well-accepted to lead to numerous positive physiological and psychological adaptations. However, many of the previous studies examining the benefits of endurance exercise on the human body have: 1) compared athletes with non-athletes using a cross-sectional design, 2) have employed training studies that are relatively short (e.g. weeks to months) in duration, 3) have primarily focused on male participants and not examined potential sex-differences, and 4) have not specifically recruited exercise naïve participants, as often participants are already engaged in ongoing recreational or competitive activities at the time of recruitment. As such, we have a limited understanding of the true time-course of adaptations that occur in exercise naïve individuals in response to training, or how physiological and psychological adaptations change beyond 4-6 months, and whether there are sex-specific differences in these adaptations. This study is primarily designed to determine the time-course of adaptation and remodeling in females and males across multiple different physiological systems (i.e. cardiac, vascular, metabolic, respiratory, immune, and microbiome) and psychological measures at rest and in response to a range of provocations. Forty healthy exercise-training naïve individuals (20 females: 20 males) will perform 12-months of individually prescribed, endurance training (including supplementary strengthening exercise for conditioning and injury prevention) designed to prepare participants for an ultra-endurance triathlon. A time-aligned control group of 20 healthy exercise-training naïve individuals (10 females: 10 males) will also be recruited to determine the natural change that occurs in each system across a year. Outcomes will be assessed at baseline, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months. Additionally, cardiovascular outcomes will also be assessed at 1 month and immune outcomes will be repeated at 3 months post intervention (15 months).

Conditions

• Healthy Participants

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Individualized, periodized endurance training for ultra-endurance triathlon.	Endurance exercise consisting of swimming, cycling and running training for a minimum of 3 hours /week up to a maximum of 20 hours/week with regular rest days and intensities being fluctuated throughout the program to optimize training stimulus and adaptation. Strengthening exercises to complement the aerobic training, enhance conditioning and prevent injury will also be performed 1-2 hours/week for the first 9-months of the program.
OTHER	Time-Aligned Control	Participants will receive no specific intervention and will continue to live their lives as if they were not in a study.

Timeline

• Start date: 2024-06-20
• Primary completion: 2025-12-30
• Completion: 2026-01-30
• First posted: 2024-06-21
• Last updated: 2025-04-04

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Canada