training with low oxygen

I know most elite distance runners train at high altitude. Meb Keflazighi and Deena Kastor, who both won Olympic medals in the Marathon, both train at high altitude. The effect is that the air is thinner, meaning there is less oxygen than at sea level. The body adapts by becoming more efficient in the way the red blood cells use oxygen. It is much more technical then I could ever hope to accurately explain, but I think that is the general way it works. Then when you train or race at sea level, there is more oxygen in the air AND the body still is efficient at processing that oxygen. As a result you should be able to perform at a higher level. Many of the worlds top distance runners come from countries or regions that are at high altitude, ie Kenya and Ethiopia. So by just living at high altitude, your body will automatically adapt to the lower oxygen levels and become more efficient. I suspect that the same training effect would occur for swimmers.

I know most elite distance runners train at high altitude. Meb Keflazighi and Deena Kastor, who both won Olympic medals in the Marathon, both train at high altitude. The effect is that the air is thinner, meaning there is less oxygen than at sea level. The body adapts by becoming more efficient in the way the red blood cells use oxygen. It is much more technical then I could ever hope to accurately explain, but I think that is the general way it works. Then when you train or race at sea level, there is more oxygen in the air AND the body still is efficient at processing that oxygen. As a result you should be able to perform at a higher level. Many of the worlds top distance runners come from countries or regions that are at high altitude, ie Kenya and Ethiopia. So by just living at high altitude, your body will automatically adapt to the lower oxygen levels and become more efficient. I suspect that the same training effect would occur for swimmers.