Visy Park's Altitude Room provides our players with the same benefits as a walk up Mt. Everest, without the risks.

It's not uncommon for the world's top cyclists and athletes to venture to the world's highest peaks, to train in less oxygen. 

Here at Visy Park, the Altitude Room provides the same experience without having to climb Mount Everest.

The room looks something like a small gym, but one in which oxygen levels are restricted through an apparatus, that pumps carbon dioxide into the room.

The Altitude Room is more effective when used in conjunction with an intense aerobic-style workout, explains Carlton's Strength and Conditioning Coach Joel Hocking. 

"We mostly do high-intensity drills, using intermittent-style training. It's important that the boys build up their lactic-acid and their heart-rates, rather than just cruising along at a low tempo."

Training at a lower oxygen level increases red blood cells, allowing more oxygen into the muscles. Therefore when back at sea level, where the oxygen is dense, the body becomes more efficient. 

"This allows them to be at their physical best whilst playing," Hocking says. 

The facility is used by the entire playing group during both the pre and home-and-away seasons. The players spend up to 40 minutes training in the room, three times per week.

The Altitude Room is also important for injured players, who are undergoing rehabilitation. It allows them to maintain cardiovascular strength, so that they don't fall behind in their fitness. 

Last November, Carlton's entire playing list jetted off to the USA for the Club's first high altitude training camp in Arizona. The team spent two weeks using a range of facilities at the Northern Arizona University.

"It was great for the boys to experience Arizona," Hocking says. "Overall it was fantastic for their fitness, and has helped in their understanding of the benefits of Carlton's Altitude Room."