Abstract
Recent studies in adults have shown that the critical intensity during running and cycling estimated from three prediction trials interspersed by 30 min is valid and reliable. To establish the reliability of the single-visit field test to determine critical speed (CS) and the distance above critical speed (D′) in adolescents, 29 trained and 14 untrained participants (mean ± SD age: 17.5 ± 0.5 years) performed three tests on a 400-m outdoor track separated by 48 h. Each test consisted of three distances selected to result in finishing times between 2 and 15 min that must be completed as fast as possible. CS and D′ were modeled using the linear 1/time model (Speed = D′(1/t) + CS). While the coefficient of variation (CV) of CS was between 2.4% and 4.3%, the CV of D′ was 9.3% to 13.6%. Also the intraclass correlation coefficient ranged from 0.919 to 0.983 for CS and from 0.325 to 0.828 for D′. The results show that the single-visit field test provides reliable estimates of CS but not D′ in trained and untrained adolescents.
Highlights
Critical power (CP), which represents the asymptote of a participant’s power-duration curve, separates the boundaries of the heavy and very heavy intensity domains and has been broadly associated with maximal lactate steady state [1]
The critical speed (CS) was significantly higher in the trained than the untrained participants (F1,41 = 18.9; p < 0.001)
There was a significant difference in CS across the three tests in the untrained participants
Summary
Critical power (CP), which represents the asymptote of a participant’s power-duration curve, separates the boundaries of the heavy and very heavy intensity domains and has been broadly associated with maximal lactate steady state [1]. According to the theory of Monod and Scherrer [2], CP represents the maximal power that can be sustained indefinitely. While this has been shown not to be the case, CP has been proposed as an important parameter of aerobic function [3]. During an exercise period undertaken above CP, exhaustion will occur when the W′ is depleted, and the rate is determined by how much a participant is exercising above his or her CP, represented by the equation. Time to exhaustion = W′/(P − CP) (1). Based on Equation (1), the time to exhaustion for an acquired speed can be predicted during exercise above CS
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