Perception of effort during exercise is independent of afferent feedback from skeletal muscles, heart, and lungs.

摘要

perception of effort, also known as perceived exertion or sense of effort, is a major feature of fatigue (7), and it is widely used to monitor and prescribe exercise intensity (18). However, despite its importance, the neurophysiological bases of this atypical sensation are poorly understood. A model popular among physiologists investigating central regulation of exercise performance is that perceived exertion results from the complex integration of different inputs to the central nervous system (CNS). These inputs include afferent feedback from the peripheral organs most active during aerobic exercise (i.e., skeletal muscles, heart, and lungs) and other interoceptors, with or without additional inputs from the CNS itself, such as knowledge of the exercise task endpoint (3, 6, 28).