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Preface
Young animals practice hunting on their own or with their parents guidance. They do not expect that such hunting activities and vigorous play with peers improve their physical fitness, resulting in more fruitful hunting. In this context, hominids also might have practiced hunting 1.5 million years ago, for example, by throwing spears (Umminger, 2000). It may not have been the intention of either animals or ancient hominids to improve their fitness. Ancient Egyptian soldiers organized systematic wrestling training in ~ 3400 BC (Umminger, 2000). It is thought that the aim of this training was to win wrestling matches and not to improve fitness.
Most animals avoid demanding exercises other than hunting practice. It is well known, however, that ancient Greeks were inspired by Plato to train with strenuous exercise to improve their fitness and physiques. Therefore, exercise training for the purpose of improving physical fitness may be specific to humans. From this perspective, the Tabata training explored in this book could be thought of as quintessentially human, because it is one of the most demanding forms of exercise training. Given this context, it might appear natural that Tabata training emerged and has gained appreciation by people in the past 20 years, although it may be that the primary reason why people prefer Tabata training is that it is not time-consuming.
The training was unexpectedly named after me by an unknown person, and I have been recognized as one of its representatives. Because the training has been taken up not only by a small number of elite athletes but also by an extremely large number of exercise lovers, I have felt a sense of responsibility to provide scientific evidence as to whether this training is beneficial or hazardous.
This book is a compilation of evidence that I have collected to date. That includes evidence not only of the effects of Tabata training on the performance of athletes ranging from elite to school level but also of the possible effects of health promotion among the general public by preventing lifestyle-related diseases. Further, I recognize that in addition to such applied physiological research, Tabata-style training conducted with rats can be used as a tool for finding cellular signals induced by exercise and elucidating molecular mechanism(s) regarding their effects on cell metabolism and expression of proteins with physiological functions. I think there will always be a need for more data on the effects of Tabata training on various aspects of the human body.
It is my great pleasure to share such data, in addition to the history of Tabata training, which I love to present to young scientist and coaches. I hope they invent even better trainings in collaboration with researchers and coaches with scientific backgrounds at the field (rink) side, just like my own experience with the coach of Olympic medal-winning speed skaters, Mr. Kouichi Irisawa. May they win medals at many future games!
Reference
Abstract
In recent years, in addition to moderate-intensity prolonged exercise training, highly motivated athletes and people who enjoy exercise for health promotion have been using high-intensity intermittent/interval training (HIIT). Kenney et al. (2019) attributed this revival of interest in HIIT between the 1970s and 2000s to appearance of Tabata training articles published in 1996 and 1997 (Tabata et al., 1996, 1997).
This is the first scientific book written exclusively on Tabata training by an author who has been studying the training named after him. This chapter introduces the books contents, including chapters on the scientific basis for the superiority of the Tabata training (Chapter 2), history of Tabata training (Chapter 3), later scientific evidence (Chapter 4), and an epilogue that looks to the future (Chapter 5).
Keywords
Tabata training; High-intensity intermittent/interval training (HIIT)
Introduction
Maximal aerobic power, measured as maximal oxygen uptake (Vo2max), is closely related to both sports performance and prevention of lifestyle-related diseases. Moderate-intensity prolonged exercise training has been used to improve athletic performance and promote health. In recent years, in addition to this conventional training, so-called aerobic training, high-intensity intermittent/interval training (HIIT) has been utilized by highly motivated athletes and people who enjoy exercise for health promotion.