TY - JOUR AU - Driller, Matthew William PY - 2012/12/31 Y2 - 2024/03/29 TI - The reliability of a 30-minute performance test on a Lode cycle ergometer JF - Journal of Science and Cycling JA - J Sci Cycling VL - 1 IS - 2 SE - DO - UR - https://jsc-journal.com/index.php/JSC/article/view/18 SP - 21-27 AB - High retest reliability is desirable in tests used to monitor athletic performance. The purpose of the present study was to determine the reliability of a 30-minute cycle test on a cycle ergometer (Lode, Groningen, Netherlands). Following an incremental VO<sub>2max</sub> test, 10 highly-trained cyclists (mean ± SD; age = 30 ± 6 years; VO<sub>2max</sub> = 67.7 ± 2.5 mL.kg<sup>-1</sup>.min<sup>-1</sup>) completed three 30-minute cycling tests on a Lode cycle ergometer each separated by more than 48 hours. The cycle test implemented a fixed workload for 15-minutes (set at 70% VO<sub>2max</sub> power output), followed by a 15-minute time-trial. Variables determined during the test were mean power (W<sub>mean</sub>), blood lactate concentration at 15-minutes (BL<sub>15</sub>), peak blood lactate concentration (BL<sub>peak</sub>) and mean heart rate (HR<sub>mean</sub>). W<sub>mean</sub> in trial 1 (312 ± 23 W) increased by 0.8% (95% confidence interval: -0.7 to 2.3%) in trial 2 and by a further 0.4% (-0.3 to 1.1%) in trial 3. The typical error of measurement expressed as a coefficient of variation (CV%) for W<sub>mean</sub> was 1.3% (1.0 to 1.8%). The CV for BL<sub>15</sub> was 10.9% (8.3 to 15.9%), BL<sub>peak</sub>; 8.4% (6.5 to 13.0%) and HR<sub>mean</sub>; 2.4% (1.8 to 3.4%). The average intraclass correlations between trials were W<sub>mean</sub>: 0.98 (0.96 to 1.00), BL<sub>15</sub>: 0.94 (0.85 to 0.98), BL<sub>peak</sub>: 0.88 (0.71- 0.97) and HR<sub>mean</sub>: 0.88 (0.71 to 0.97). A strong correlation existed between VO<sub>2max</sub> and PPO in the incremental test and W<sub>mean</sub> in the 30-minute TT (<em>r</em> = 0.86, 0.93, respectively). The testing protocol performed on a Lode cycle ergometer in the current study is reproducible in highly-trained cyclists, making it a reliable method for monitoring cycling performance.<br /> ER -