Effect of heavy-intensity ‘priming' exercise on oxygen uptake and muscle deoxygenation kinetics during moderate-intensity step-transitions initiated from an elevated work rate

Highlights • Priming exercise speeds O2 uptake kinetics in those whose kinetics are slow. • Slower muscle deoxygenation kinetics accompany this faster rate of adjustment. • O2 uptake kinetics are slower when initiated from elevated intensities. • Priming mitigates this work-to-work effect in those with slow but not fast kinetics. • Mechanistically, the work-to-work effect differs depending on initial kinetics