ORIGINAL ARTICLE Energetics of karate (kata and kumite techniques) in top-level athletes Christian Doria Æ Arsenio Veicsteinas Æ Eloisa Limonta Æ Martina A. Maggioni Æ Pierluigi Aschieri Æ Fabrizio Eusebi Æ Giorgio Fano ` Æ Tiziana Pietrangelo Accepted: 29 July 2009 / Published online: 27 August 2009 Ó Springer-Verlag 2009 Abstract Breath-by-breath O 2 uptake ( _ V O 2 , L min -1 ) and blood lactate concentration were measured before, during exercise, and recovery in six kata and six kumite karate Word Champions performing a simulated competition. _ V O 2max ; maximal anaerobic alactic, and lactic power were also assessed. The total energy cost (V O 2TOT ; mL kg -1 above resting) of each simulated competition was calcu- lated and subdivided into aerobic, lactic, and alactic frac- tions. Results showed that (a) no differences between kata and kumite groups in _ V O 2max ; height of vertical jump, and Wingate test were found; (b) V O 2TOT were 87.8 ± 6.6 and 82.3 ± 12.3 mL kg -1 in kata male and female with a performance time of 138 ± 4 and 158 ± 14 s, respec- tively; 189.0 ± 14.6 mL kg -1 in kumite male and 155.8 ± 38.4 mL kg -1 in kumite female with a predeter- mined performance time of 240 ± 0 and 180 ± 0 s, respectively; (c) the metabolic power was significantly higher in kumite than in kata athletes (p B 0.05 in both gender); (d) aerobic and anaerobic alactic sources, in per- centage of the total, were significantly different between gender and disciplines (p \ 0.05), while the lactic source was similar; (e) HR ranged between 174 and 187 b min -1 during simulated competition. In conclusion, kumite appears to require a much higher metabolic power than kata, being the energy source with the aerobic contribution predominant. Keywords Oxygen consumption Á Energy cost Á Energy sources Á Blood lactate Á Kumite Á Kata Á Karate Á Maximal aerobic and anaerobic power Introduction Karate is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands (Japan) from indigenous fighting methods and Chinese kenpo¯ . Athletes use almost all muscles during training and competition, but the two forms of the sport (kumite and kata) differ significantly with regards to style and corre- sponding muscle use. Kata consists of a predetermined series of movements that are performed with explosive swiftness against imag- inary opponents, whereas kumite involves noncontact fighting. C. Doria Á G. Fano ` Á T. Pietrangelo (&) Department of Basic and Applied Medical Sciences, University ‘‘G.d’Annunzio’’ Chieti-Pescara, Via dei Vestini 31, 66100 Chieti, Italy e-mail: tiziana@unich.it G. Fano ` e-mail: fano@unich.it C. Doria Á E. Limonta Á M. A. Maggioni Á F. Eusebi Á G. Fano ` Á T. Pietrangelo Interuniversity Institute of Myology (IIM), University ‘‘G.d’Annunzio’’ Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy A. Veicsteinas Á E. Limonta Á M. A. Maggioni Department of Sport Sciences, Nutrition and Health, University of Milan, Via Colombo 71, 20133 Milan, Italy P. Aschieri Federazione Italiana Judo Lotta Karate ed Arti Marziali (FIJLKAM), Viale Sandolini 79, 00122 Rome, Italy F. Eusebi Department of Human Physiology and Pharmacology, University ‘‘La Sapienza’’, P.le A. Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy A. Veicsteinas Center of Sport Medicine, Don Gnocchi Foundation, Via Capecelatro 66, 20148 Milan, Italy 123 Eur J Appl Physiol (2009) 107:603–610 DOI 10.1007/s00421-009-1154-y