Physiological Criteria in Defining the Standards for Training and Competition Loads in Elite Sports

Abstract

Adaptation to training loads can be quantitatively described by a dose-effect dependence (Fig. 1, [1]). A gain in the training function over a certain period is regarded as the effect, and the dose is expressed as a product of the energy spent during exercise and the total duration of training. The duration combines the periods of exercises, pauses, and recovery needed to compensate for the fast fraction of the oxygen debt. The absolute pulse rate, usually used in sports to assess the energy expenditures of exercise, depends linearly on the anaerobic energy supply only within a limited range of physical loads of a subcritical power, when the maximum oxygen consumption is achieved. Within a wider range, it seems more proper to use generalized pulse criteria, such as the pulse sum of work, pulse debt, and pulse cost of exercises, which can be derived from the pulse rate kinetics recorded during work and recovery [2,3].This study was designed to test how useful the pulse sum and the energy cost of exercise might be for quantitating and standardizing training and competition loads. METHODSTwenty-six highly qualified swimmers, middle-distance runners, and speed skaters (age 18-24 years, height 162-186 cm, and weight 62-83 kg) performed a series of single bicycle ergometer tests with duration limits of 10, 30, 60, 120, and 360 s. In addition, they were tested according to our standard laboratory program, the results of which allowed an integrated assessment of their anaerobic and aerobic working capacities at the critical intensity of muscle activity. This program consisted of the following tests: the stepwise load increase test, assessing the maximum oxygen consumption and critical power [4,5]; the single-time limAbstract -Adaptation to training loads can be quantitatively described by a dose-effect dependence, with the gain in the training function over a certain period regarded as the effect and the dose expressed as a product of the energy spent during exercise and the stimulus duration. The duration combines the periods of exercises, pauses, and recovery needed to compensate for the fast fraction of the oxygen debt. In addition to direct measurements of the energy spent, quantitative assessment of the load intensity can be based on the total pulse cost of exercise, which accurately reflects the changes in the oxygen demand and the energy cost of the physical load. To quantitate and standardize training and competition loads, we suggest the use of correlations found between the pulse and energy costs of exercises and their relative power determined in critical modes of muscle activity: at the anaerobic threshold; the critical power, associated with the maximum oxygen consumption; the alactic anaerobic threshold; the power of exhaustion, when blood lactic acid reaches its maximum; or at maximum aerobic power, when the muscle reserves of ATP and creatine phosphate are the most depleted. ∆ F D = I × T Fig. 1. Dose-effect dependence for training-induced changes in performance. The ordinate shows an increase in the trai...

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