EPOC (Oxygen Debt)

What is EPOC (Oxygen Debt)?

EPOC stands for excess post-exercise oxygen consumption and is commonly called oxygen debt at this level. It is the extra oxygen consumed after vigorous exercise has finished, over and above the amount that would have been used at rest. It arises because lactic acid has accumulated during exercise: heart rate remains elevated so that blood transports lactic acid from the muscles to the liver, breathing remains deeper and faster so that extra oxygen enters the blood, and oxygen is then used in the liver in the breakdown of the lactic acid. EPOC is a quantity of oxygen, not a substance and not a sensation.

This definition is part of the Respiration chapter in Cambridge O Level Biology.

Concepts related to EPOC (Oxygen Debt)

• Lactic Acid
• Liver
• Heart Rate