ANALYSIS OF PEDALING TECHNIQUE DURING A MAXIMAL CYCLING EXERCISE

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of the fatigue process during a maximal cycling exercise on the pedaling technique. Eight elite competitive male cyclists were evaluated in a two days protocol. On day 1, the cyclists were submitted to a VO2MAX test, and on day 2, they cycled to exhaustion on a cycle ergometer equipped with two 2-D pedals dynamometer to measure the forces applied on the pedals. The workload was set at 100% of their VO2MAX, as measured on day 1. The resultant and effective forces were calculated from normal and tangential forces to obtain the index of effectiveness (IE). No differences were observed in the IE throughout the entire test. This study suggests that under a fatigue protocol, elite cyclists are able to sustain the IE, which can be an important strategy in order to sustain the power output.