HIIT is more effective at improving brachial artery vascular function than MICT, perhaps due to its tendency to positively influence CRF, traditional CVD risk factors, oxidative stress, inflammation, and insulin sensitivity. However, the variability in the secondary outcome measures, coupled with the small sample sizes in these studies, limits this finding. Nonetheless, this review suggests that 4 × 4 HIIT, three times per week for at least 12 weeks, is a powerful form of exercise to enhance vascular function.

A mobile phone intervention was not effective at increasing exercise capacity over and above usual care. The intervention was effective and probably cost-effective for increasing physical activity and may have the potential to augment existing cardiac rehabilitation services.

Metabolic syndrome (MetSyn) represents a clustering of different metabolic abnormalities. MetSyn prevalence is present in approximately 25% of all adults with increased prevalence in advanced ages. The presence of one component of MetSyn increases the risk of developing MetSyn later in life and likely represents a high lifetime burden of cardiovascular disease risk. Therefore we pooled data from multiple studies to establish the prevalence of MetSyn and MetSyn component prevalence across a broad range of ethnicities. PubMed, SCOPUS and Medline databases were searched to find papers presenting MetSyn and MetSyn component data for 18–30 year olds who were apparently healthy, free of disease, and MetSyn was assessed using either the harmonized, National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP-ATPIII), American Heart Association/National Heart, Blood and Lung Institute (AHA/NHBLI), or International Diabetes Federation (IDF) definitions of MetSyn. After reviewing returned articles, 26,609 participants' data from 34 studies were included in the analysis and the data were pooled. MetSyn was present in 4.8–7% of young adults. Atherogenic dyslipidaemia defined as low high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol was the most prevalent MetSyn component (26.9–41.2%), followed by elevated blood pressure (16.6–26.6%), abdominal obesity (6.8–23.6%), atherogenic dyslipidaemia defined as raised triglycerides (8.6–15.6%), and raised fasting glucose (2.8–15.4%). These findings highlight that MetSyn is prevalent in young adults. Establishing the reason why low HDL is the most prevalent component may represent an important step in promoting primary prevention of MetSyn and reducing the incidence of subsequent clinical disease.

Graded exercise testing (GXT) is the most widely used assessment to examine the dynamic relationship between exercise and integrated physiological systems. The information from GXT can be applied across the spectrum of sport performance, occupational safety screening, research, and clinical diagnostics. The suitability of GXT to determine a valid maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) has been under investigation for decades. Although a set of recommended criteria exists to verify attainment of VO2max, the methods that originally established these criteria have been scrutinized. Many studies do not apply identical criteria or fail to consider individual variability in physiological responses. As an alternative to using traditional criteria, recent research efforts have been directed toward using a supramaximal verification protocol performed after a GXT to confirm attainment of VO2max. Furthermore, the emergence of self-paced protocols has provided a simple, yet reliable approach to designing and administering GXT. In order to develop a standardized GXT protocol, additional research should further examine the utility of self-paced protocols used in conjunction with verification protocols to elicit and confirm attainment of VO2max.

Supramaximal testing is widely used to verify VO2max attainment, yet its efficacy in sedentary subjects is unknown. The aim of the study was to test this hypothesis in men and women completing maximal cycle ergometry. Fifteen sedentary subjects (age=22.4+/-3.9 year) completed incremental exercise, and returned at least 24 h later to complete constant load exercise at 105% peak work rate (Wmax). Another group of nine sedentary men and women (age=21.8+/-5 year) completed supramaximal exercise at 115% Wmax 1-1.5 h after incremental exercise. During exercise, gas exchange data and heart rate (HR) were continuously obtained. VO2max was similar (p>0.05) between incremental and supramaximal exercise in subjects in the first (32.32+/-4.81 mL/kg/min vs. 31.80+/-5.35 mL/kg/min) and second subset (40.63+/-3.61 mL/kg/min vs. 41.66+/-5.55 mL/kg/min). Maximal HR was lower (p<0.05) with supramaximal exercise, yet respiratory exchange ratio was higher (p<0.05). Test-retest reliability (r=0.81-0.89, p<0.05) for VO2max was high during repeated bouts of supramaximal testing. Findings support use of this protocol to confirm VO2max attainment in healthy, sedentary men and women completing incremental cycle ergometry.