Maximal inspiratory mouth pressure in Japanese elite male athletes

• Maximal inspiratory mouth pressure (MIP) characteristics of athletes vary across sport types.
• Participants in this study were 301 Japanese elite male athletes.
• In absolute terms, the MIP of athletes with higher body mass tended to be stronger.
• Athletes who experienced inspiratory muscle fatigue tended to have stronger MIP.

Maximal inspiratory mouth pressure (MIP) is a common measurement of inspiratory muscle strength, which is often used in a variety of exercises to evaluate the effects of inspiratory muscle training. An understanding of elite athletes’ MIP characteristics is needed to guide sport-specific inspiratory muscle training programs. The purpose of this study was to investigate and better understand the MIP characteristics of elite athletes from a variety of sports. A total of 301 Japanese elite male athletes participated in this study. MIP was assessed using a portable autospirometer with a handheld mouth pressure meter. Athletes with higher body mass tended to have stronger MIP values, in absolute terms. In relative terms, however, athletes who regularly experienced exercise-induced inspiratory muscle fatigue tended to have stronger MIP values. Our findings suggest that athletes could benefit from prescribed, sport-specific, inspiratory muscle training or warm-ups.