Cardiovascular response to combined dynamic and static exercise.

The cardiovascular response to combined static handgrip at 20% MVC and dynamic leg exercise was studied in young male subjects. Cardiac output increased by 2.3 liters/min (30%) at isolated handgrip and by 1.0 liter/min (7%) when handgrip was added to dynamic exercise at 100 W. In spite of an increased arterial blood pressure, leg blood flow was unaffected by handgrip, both when it was performed isolated and in combination with dynamic exercise. Temperature measurements in mixed venous blood and subcutaneous tissue indicated an increased blood flow to peripheral circulatory areas. During combinations of handgrip and dynamic exercise at different levels of VO2, heart rate response to handgrip was progressively less marked as maximal oxygen uptake was approached. Therefore a vagal withdrawal seems to be the most important heart rate-increasing mechanism during combined exercise. Systolic blood pressure response to handgrip was still preserved at 25 and 45% of max VO2. At 95% of max VO2, the blood pressure response to handgrip was abolished, probably due to a competitive utilization of the same blood pressure-raising mechanism in dynamic and static exercise.