You have tested the effects of training in Gym with nose-mouth protection. What did you find out?
Michael Despeghel: The inhalation and exhalation – through which oxygen is taken up and brought to the cells and emitted CO2 – is through polyester, cotton, but also through Plastics and foam prevents and blocks. In the idle state you breathe in and out about eight to twelve times and draw half a liter of air. During sporting activities, this quickly increases to 50 to 70 times, and up to two and a half liters of air are then transported back and forth. We found out that there is a mask here Oxygen saturation of the blood noticeably reduced.
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How exactly did that look in your tests with a mask?
Despeghel: At rest, the Oxygen saturation are 99 percent. If you exercise physically with a mask, we have found that under cotton and cotton-polyester Oxygen saturation drops in the blood by about three to five percent. There are over five percent of the foams used in FFP2 protective masks, for example. It will be really dangerous. It is imperative for the cells to get enough oxygen during exercise. The waste of Oxygen saturation under the usual masks, you cannot expect anyone to do physical training, it doesn’t work. This is harmful and also uncomfortable.
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So there should be other masks for training in the studio?
Despeghel: Yes, in one Gym – Even with a distance of two meters, barriers between devices, spit protection, etc. – the aerosol load is much higher. The Mask requirement makes the most sense here. We tried to find out whether there are fabrics that are more suitable – and we found what we were looking for: The fabric used in cycling shirts or swimming trunks has a high permeability, which we will now test. If here the Oxygen saturation is better, you could work with it.
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Training in Gym without a mask is excluded?
Despeghel: Yes, that will be an essential requirement. Gloves and mask must be.
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What should you consider when choosing gloves?
Despeghel: Of course it would be nice if it wasn’t rubber latex, but merino or something very permeable with a stop guard on the underside of the hand. The latex disposable gloves create a lot of friction. If you hold a weight in your hand, it burns. A barbell, for example, normally moves in your hand, this is prevented by the latex gloves and the workout quickly becomes uncomfortable. So they are not the best solution.
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What about showers, changing rooms and saunas when the studios open again?
Despeghel: These areas cannot be used. Also toilet facilities will probably only be allowed to be entered individually. This is of course a major obstacle. It will not be as usual in the studios for now.
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Why should you still decide to train in the Gyms resume when they are allowed to open?
Despeghel: I was generally against the complete lockdown of the Gyms. Because we also have completely different health problems. The next pandemic is surely type 2 diabetes and tumor diseases. You can prevent this with sports, among other things. The immune system is the guardian of health, as confirmed by the virologists. Good physical performance also means being better armed against the virus. If you protect yourself with a mask, comply with distance and hygiene rules, it certainly makes sense to start training again.
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How does a long break from training work?
Despeghel: The body knows no mercy. If 14 days of the stress that I normally had is missing, it is almost as if I had not exercised for half a year. We lose 38 percent cardiovascular performance and 40 percent of maximum strength in one week of doing nothing.
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