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.