Research overview: aerobic and anaerobic energetics of the cheetah chase

A cheetah sprint is brief and metabolically violent. This overview compiles what is known about the energetic cost of the chase, the reliance on anaerobic pathways during the seconds of peak effort, and the oxygen debt repaid afterward. Because hunts usually last well under a minute, much of the burst is fuelled anaerobically, producing heat and metabolites faster than they can be cleared. Researchers approach the problem through respirometry on exercising captive cats, blood-lactate sampling, and modelling from body mass and speed. The findings frame why cheetahs rest at length after a chase and why repeated failed attempts are costly. Energetics also connect to thermoregulation, since the same burst that powers the sprint loads the body with heat that must later be dissipated.