Wearing a face mask helps stop the spread of Covid-19 by catching contaminated air droplets that an infected person expels from their lungs when breathing out. The effect of this potential obstruction to air flow when exercising has not been understood until now. A recent article published by the British Journal of Sports Medicine examined that effect during an incremental treadmill stress test:
“Effects of wearing a cloth face mask on performance, physiological and perceptual responses during a graded treadmill running exercise test”
https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2021/03/05/bjsports-2020-103758
They found that the face mask reduced an individuals exercise capacity by reducing the length of time the person was able to stay on the treadmill as the speed increased, and also reduced the maximum intensity the person could reach (determined by the V02 max). V02 max is the maximum rate of oxygen consumption a person can burn, measured in liters per kilogram per minute. This was reduced by almost 30% when wearing a mask.
It’s an important consideration when exercising. We should expect greater levels of fatigue for the same intensity of exercise that we were accustomed to before Covid-19 when we did not routinely wear face coverings. We should plan our exercise intensity and set our exercise goals accordingly.
