Simulated Altitude Training/Sleeping

The effect of altitude on performance is quite a controversial topic.

The basic effect is that when exercising at high altitude, the partial pressure of the oxygen is less than at low altitude so the oxygen is not as readily absorbed by your red blood cells. If you live or train for long durations at altitude your body compensates by manufacturing more red blood cells. There seems to be controversy over how long this process takes.

A google of "High Altitude Training" yields a plethora of training camps claiming that high altitude training improves low-altitude performance. However, there is not conclusive agreement that this is the case, at least not beyond a very short-term effect. And it may take very long-duration exposure to high altitude to force the adaptation (some suggest as long as 12-18 months).

There are several variables: training altitude, sleeping altitude, event altitude, duration of exposure, and time between altitude training and the event.

The only combination that I am aware of that has really been proven is that training at high altitude can improve performance at high altitude. There is again controversy regarding the duration of exposure required to gain a significant benefit (i.e. how long does it really take your body to make enough extra red blood cells to improve high-altitude performance).

Apparently at least one set of studies has found a benefit to the "sleep high / train low" combination which I believe is the genesis of the popularity of the hypoxic tents for athletes.

There is also at least one study that shows a short-duration benefit of high-altitude training to low altitude performance, but again I think this has not been borne out by many other studies. I think the basic idea is that coupling the high-altitude hematocrit with low-altitude oxygen pressure can yield better performance. The questions are: at what point does higher hematocrit hit diminishing returns at low altitude, and whether this effect can last long enough to make a difference in a future athletic event.

So then:

- Why not put the Olympic training center in Breckenridge or Leadville?

and

- Why doesn't Bolivia pump out even more amazing runners than Kenya?