Effects of Prior Upper Body Exercise on the 3-min All-Out Cycling Test in Men

Introduction Prior upper body exercise reduces the curvature constant (W ') of the hyperbolic power-duration relationship without affecting critical power. This study tested the hypothesis that prior upper body exercise reduces the work done over the end-test power (WEP; analog ofW ') during a 3-min all-out cycling test (3MT) without affecting the end-test power (EP; analog of critical power). Methods Ten endurance-trained men (VO2max= 62 +/- 5 mL center dot kg(-1)center dot min(-1)) performed a 3MT without (CYC) and with (ARM-CYC) prior severe-intensity, intermittent upper body exercise. EP was calculated as the mean power output over the last 30 s of the 3MT, whereas WEP was calculated as the power-time integral above EP. Results At the start of the 3MT, plasma [La-] (1.8 +/- 0.4 vs 14.1 +/- 3.4 mmol center dot L-1) and [H+] (42.8 +/- 3.1 vs 58.6 +/- 5.5 nmol center dot L-1) were higher, whereas the strong ion difference (41.4 +/- 2.2 vs 30.9 +/- 4.6 mmol center dot L-1) and [HCO3-] (27.0 +/- 1.9 vs 16.9 +/- 3.2 mmol center dot L-1) were lower during ARM-CYC than CYC (P< 0.010). EP was 12% lower during the 3MT of ARM-CYC (298 +/- 52 W) than CYC (338 +/- 60 W;P< 0.001), whereas WEP was not different (CYC: 12.8 +/- 3.3 kJ vs ARM-CYC: 13.5 +/- 4.1 kJ,P= 0.312). EP in CYC was positively correlated with the peak [H+] (r= 0.78,P= 0008) and negatively correlated with the lowest [HCO3-] (r= -0.74,P= 0.015). Conclusions These results suggest that EP during a 3MT in endurance-trained men is sensitive to fatigue-related ionic perturbation.