Abstract
With the recent increases in global temperatures and women working in tactical positions, understanding if sex-specific responses to hotter environments are present is crucial. However, it is currently unclear if females experience different perceptual responses to warm and hot environments compared to males while performing the same absolute exercise workload. PURPOSE: To investigate the sex differences in perceptual responses in warm and hot environments while performing the same absolute exercise workload. METHODS: Physically active eleven males (age: 23±5 yrs, body mass: 72±8 kg, height: 175±8 cm, estimated maximal oxygen uptake [VO2max]: 51.6±5.9 ml⋅kg-1⋅min-1) and six females (age: 27±8 yrs, body mass: 56±6 kg, height: 164±3 cm, estimated VO2max: 46.9±3.7 ml⋅kg-1⋅min-1) participated in the study. Subjects completed two 62-minute exercise sessions, which involved 20 minutes of running at 5.5 m⋅h-1 on a treadmill with a 2-minute break of putting on a 20-pound weighted vest. After putting the vest on, subjects walked for 40 minutes at 3.5 m⋅h-1 with a 6% grade. The entire exercise protocol had a work-to-rest ratio of 4 to 1 minute. The sessions were conducted in a warm (27℃, 40% relative humidity [RH]) and hot environment (35℃, 50% RH). Perceptual measures such as rating of perceived exertion (RPE), thirst level (TL), thermal sensation (TS), and fatigue were taken every 10 minutes during the exercise protocol. A linear-mixed effects model with a Tukey post-hoc analysis was used to investigate if sex differences were present in the perceptual responses while performing an absolute exercise workload in warm and hot environments. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in maximum and average RPE, TL, TS, and fatigue between females and males (ps > 0.05). Additionally, there were no significant differences in maximum and average RPE, maximum and average TL, and maximum fatigue between conditions (ps > 0.05). Independent of sex, participants reported a greater maximal and average TS while exercising in the hot environment compared to the warm environment (ps < 0.01). Moreover, participants reported greater average fatigue while exercising in the hot environment compared to the warm environment (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: There are no sex differences in the perceptual responses resulting from performing an absolute exercise workload in warm and hot environments. In general, individuals who exercise in hotter environments feel hotter and fatigued compared to exercising in cooler environments. Future research should investigate if specific factors, such as aerobic fitness or hormonal responses, significantly impact perceptual responses while exercising in hotter environments as it may play a role in training design development for female and male athletes preparing for competition in elevated temperatures.
Recommended Citation
Sassetti, Caitlin C.; Hernandez, Mario I.; Brojanac, Alexandra P.; McCollum, Tyler B.; Roberts, Rachel R.; and Sekiguchi, Yasuki
(2026)
"Sex Differences in the Perceptual Responses While Performing Intermittent Absolute Exercise in Warm and Hot Environments,"
International Journal of Exercise Science: Conference Proceedings: Vol. 2:
Iss.
18, Article 56.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/ijesab/vol2/iss18/56