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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Effects of initial performance, gross efficiency and VO_2peak characteristics on subsequent adaptations to endurance training in competitive cyclists

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The present study investigated the effects of initial levels of cycling performance, peak oxygen uptake (www.frontiersin.orgO2peak) and gross efficiency (GE) on the subsequent adaptations of these variables and their relationship following high-intensity training (HIT) designed to increase www.frontiersin.orgO2peak in competitive cyclists. Sixty cyclists (www.frontiersin.orgO2peak = 61 ± 6 mL kg-1 min-1) were assigned a 12-week training program consisting of twenty-four supervised high-intensity interval training sessions and ad libitum low intensity training. GE was calculated at 125, 175, and 225 W and performance was determined by mean power during a 40-min time-trial (Power40 min). In addition to correlation analyses between initial level and pre- to post-intervention changes of the different variables, we compared these changes between four groups where participants were categorized with either low and/or high initial levels of www.frontiersin.orgO2peak and GE. Average volume of high- and low-intensity training during the 12-week intervention was 1.5 ± 0.3 and 8.3 ± 2.7 h.week-1, respectively. Following the 12-week training period, there was a significant increase in absolute and body mass normalized www.frontiersin.orgO2peak and Power40 min (p 0.12). In conclusion, the present findings suggest that there are statistically significant effects of initial levels of cycling performance and www.frontiersin.orgO2peak and on the subsequent adaptations following a 12-week HIT program, but the small and moderate effects indicate limited influence on training practice. Copyright © 2018 Skovereng, Sylta, Tønnessen, Hammarström, Danielsen, Seiler, Rønnestad and Sandbakk. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.