VALIDATION OF A FIELD BASED INCREMENTAL TEST FOR PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT IN ORIENTEERS

Abstract

PURPOSE To validate a field based incremental test for performance assessment in orienteers. METHOD Seven well trained male orienteers (age 23.7 ±2.0 (X ±SD) yrs, height 181.5 ±8.0 cm, mass 71.4 ±5.1 kg, VO2max 72.4 ± 3.1 ml/kgxmin) volunteered to participate in this study. The orienteers completed a 6 stage incremental test in both Field and Laboratory settings, comprising speeds from 8–18 km/hr, with increments of 2 km/hr. Intervals of 1 min were placed between each stage to permit blood collection for analysis of lactic acid concentration ([La]). The Field test comprised an 803m out and back course over flat, dry, forest terrain. The course was marked every 5–10m and each orienteer was paced by a speedometer equipped bicycle being ridden on a track parallel to and 5–10m from the course. The Laboratory test was conducted on a treadmill, with stages of 803m, and at a 4.5% grade to replicate the physiological demands of level terrain running. VO2 was measured continuously in both Field and Laboratory settings with a Medgraphics Aerosport VO2000 portable gas analysis system, and averaged over 30 second intervals. Heart rate (HR) was measured with a Polar Vantage NV heart rate monitor. [La] was measured from a blood sample collected from a fingertip and analysed with a Lactate Pro portable analyser. RESULTS HR, [La] and VO2 increased significantly with increases in running speed in both Field and Laboratory settings, but there were no significant differences in HR, [La] or VO2 between the Field or Laboratory tests at any running speed. There were no significant differences in HR at [La] 4 mM (177 ± 4 v 176 ± 7 bpm for Field and Laboratory tests respectively), HRmax (191 ± 6 v 189 ± 6 bpm), [La] peak (11.1 ± 0.8 v 10.7 ± 3.5 mM) or VO2max (69.0 ± 4.0 v 72.4 ± 3.1 ml/kgxmin) between the trials. CONCLUSION It is possible to conduct incremental tests for performance assessment in orienteers in a field setting using terrain running.