A few months ago I and my son decided to start exercising. The first thing I did was to buy the best training mask, and that way I could exploit my potential in cycling. With it, I manage to perform more and I do not worry about cycling easily and running out of oxygen.
This mask is ideal for fitness, exercise, MMA, Soccer, Running, Cycling, Boxing, so if you are looking for an increase of physical aptitude in these areas, do not miss my comparative list with the best options of the market.
What is the best training mask?
Choosing the cheapest training mask, but also having a good performance can be a bit complicated, right? But if you know, detail by detail, what a good mask should contain, making this purchase will not be difficult at all. Always remember that you must purchase a model with the right size for you.
In addition, the manufacturing material is key; this will determine the durability and also the correct perspiration when exercising. However, if you want to go for the safe, acquire one of the models that we bring to you today.
1. Sparthos workout mask
![Sparthos Training Mask High Altitude Mask - for Gym Workouts, Running, Cycling, Elevation, Cardio - Fitness Training Mask - Hypoxic Resistance o2 2 3 - Lung Breathing Exercise [Black + Case]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41xrgJRetmL.jpg)
This fascinating breathing mask made of non-toxic silicone, and pleasant to the touch without causing allergies or skin reactions is ideal for altitude practices strengthening the ability to breathe, with a very breathable fabric including a fit that does not hurt, increasing comfort and desire to exercise.
2. Black Training Mask
The adjustment strap made of neoprene allows a super comfortable fit, which will be imperceptible when using. With this “training mask”, you will be able to simulate a workout with low air conditions, allowing to increase the resistance in normal situations and exploit all your performance.
3. FDBRO Training Mask
You will be the first of your group once you start training with this wonderful hypoxia training mask. Its super-low weight increases comfort, reducing discomfort in order to allow longer days, strengthening the thoracic cage and enhancing breathing capacity, ideal for controlled breathing.
4. Jaylong training mask
Training mask 95 grams of weight, almost as light as air. It has a truly sporty design, with five layers of filter for a greater simulation of extreme conditions, with filtration effectiveness of 95%. Its PM2.5 protection standard makes it one of the safest in the market.
5. George High Altitude Training Mask
Comfortable and cutting-edge design thanks to the use of silicone and neoprene that optimizes comfort during use. It manages to simulate heights from 900 to 5500 meters, split 6 different stations. The air supply is made through 7 additional pieces.
How does this mask work?
These training masks work by restricting air intake, forcing your muscles to inhale harder to get the same amount of oxygen during a workout under normal circumstances.
What are training masks for?
They are used in circumstances of resistance. Which means that you put more effort into a lower category activity for a longer period of time. Trotting, cycling, and other cardiovascular activities fit into this category.
With these exercises, your oxygenation requirements increase at a regular and consistent rate, providing greater resistance to your breathing.
Do training masks help us?
In recent decades, elite athletes who seek to improve their performance, especially in sports where endurance plays a fundamental role (cycling, marathon, football), have tried various methods and hardly attainable for the amateur athlete. This is the case of the use of hyperbaric chambers or training mask whose objective is to reduce the availability of oxygen by stimulating the atmospheric conditions of the height to improve their endurance and sports performance.
Athletes had to be at an altitude of 2100-2500 meters about 10 hours a day for at least 3 weeks. Given the operational difficulties that this entails, other more efficient methods were proposed to achieve similar results. In this sense, intermittent hypoxic trainingtries to expose the athlete to small times (1 or 2 hours) in conditions of simulated altitude to cause hypoxia and thus improve performance by a response of the flattering blood.
The hypoxic training mask has been designed to try to simulate the effects of altitude training by restricting the entry and exit of air during cardiovascular exercises especially, thus training the respiratory muscles. The main advantage of a training mask would theoretically be a simulation at sea level of the effects of height training with a more economically affordable tool. More specifically, training with the mask is supposed to increase lung capacity, anaerobic threshold, maximum oxygen consumption, energy productionand physical and mental endurance. However, none of this is proven today scientifically.
Is the hypoxic training mask beneficial?
There is currently a shortage of studies that demonstrate the beneficial effects of the training mask on people who exercise. On the one hand, when the acute effects of the mask are compared during physical exertion, there are no differences in heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen consumption, peripheral oxygen saturation in blood or blood lactate. However, given the same exercise, there is a greater perception of effort and higher levels of anxiety.
On the other hand, when comparing the effects after a physical training it is observed that training with the mask does not offer advantages with respect to the improvement of the maximum oxygen consumptionor of the haematological variables although it does improve the ventilatory threshold and respiratory compensation point. It is suggested that the use of the training mask during high-intensity workouts does not seem to act as areal-height training simulator and rather acts as more specific training for respiratory musculature.
In summary, the hypoxic training mask, despite being a novel and affordable tool for any user who is dedicated to fitness or sport, does not seem to achieve most of the benefits set out above and these focus especially on the respiratory musculature rather than variables related to oxygen consumption or haematological composition. In addition, the current evidence on the subject is limited, the studies are of poor quality and this tool needs to be further investigated to know its real advantages in sport and fitness.
Characteristics that you should keep in mind
Lace
It should fit over your nose and mouth, providing a quality seal. This factor is a little more complicated in men with facial hair. If a mask has multiple sizes, it is important to determine which one would fit best in you.
Material
The material used for this mask usually covers three types, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. The most common materials are silicone, rubber and latex. Keep in mind that all of them provide excellent performance, but they can affect people in different ways.
The thickness of the material
This has more to do with comfort than with another issue. The new 3.0 masks have very thin material, while the 2.0 units are a little thicker.
Levels of resistance
The best units come with adjustable levels of resistance. These levels correspond to different altitudes. Most of the masks have 4.6, 8 and even 16 different altitude levels.
Filters
While some of these filters are basic, others are remarkably complex. The most advanced filter options are removable, adjustable and able to protect you from dust. Some of the filters offer excellent construction, like those that have six different layers.
Comfort
The simplest way to achieve adequate comfort is to use optimal materials that emphasize the purpose of the mask, regardless of whether it is cold protection, dust filtration or resistance.
Holes for breathing
Allowing a proper flow of oxygen into the interior is one of the biggest challenges of each manufacturer brand. To solve this riddle, companies include strategically arranged ventilation and ventilation holes, not because of style, but very useful.
