Reproducibility of peak power output during a 10-s cycling maximal effort using different sampling rates

Abstract

The study was aimed to investigate the reproducibility of performance parameters obtained from 10-s maximal cycling effort against different braking forces in young adult athletes. The sample (n = 48) included male athletes aged 18.9-29.9 years (175.5 ± 6.9 cm, 76.2 ± 10.1 kg). The exercise protocol was performed in a cycle-ergometer against a random braking force (4% to 11% of body mass). Intra-individual variation was examined from repeated tests within one week. Descriptive statistics were computed and differences between sessions were tested using paired t-test. The coefficient of correlation between repeated measures, technical error of measurement (TEM), coefficient of variation and ICC were calculated. Agreement between trials was examined using the Bland-Altman procedure. Mean values of peak power were relatively stable when obtained from sampling rates of 50 Hz and ranged between 1068 watt and 1082 watt (t(47) = 1.149, p = 0.256, ES-r = 0.165) or while corresponding to a sampling rate of 1 Hz (t(47) = 0.742, p = 0.462, ES-r = 0.107). Correlations between repeated measures were high (+0.907, 95% CI: +0.839 to +0.947) and TEM about 59.3 watt (%CV = 5.52%; ICC = 0.951, 95% CI: 0.912 to 0.972). The present study suggests that reproducibility of peak power in male adult athletes tended to be acceptable and within individual error appeared unrelated to braking force.

Keywords: Bland-Altman plot; anaerobic power; cycle-ergometer; intra-class correlation; short-term maximal intensity effort; technical error of measurement reliability.