Top

European Journal of Applied Physiology

Published in:

01-09-2013 | Original Article

Effects of isolated locomotor muscle fatigue on pacing and time trial performance

Authors: Helma M. de Morree, Samuele M. Marcora

Published in: European Journal of Applied Physiology | Issue 9/2013

Abstract

Purpose

Locomotor muscle fatigue impairs exercise performance during time to exhaustion tests. However, its effect on self-regulation of power output (pacing) is unknown. The primary aim of this study was to investigate the effects of locomotor muscle fatigue on pacing and time trial performance.

Methods

Ten healthy recreationally active men completed a 15-min time trial on a cycle ergometer 30 min after undergoing an eccentric fatiguing protocol designed to induce a substantial strength loss in the knee extensor muscles without inducing significant metabolic stress. This fatigue condition was compared with a control condition, using a randomly counterbalanced AB/BA crossover design.

Results

Total work completed during the 15-min cycling time trial was significantly reduced by 4.8 % in the fatigue condition compared with the control condition. This was caused by a significant reduction in power output. Rating of perceived exertion was significantly higher in the fatigue condition compared with the control condition only during the first 3 min of the time trial. Heart rate and vastus lateralis integrated electromyogram were not significantly different between the two conditions.

Conclusion

The results show that participants with fatigued locomotor muscles reduce their pace but do not change their pacing strategy. As a result, there was a significant reduction in time trial performance. As predicted by the psychobiological model of exercise performance, a slower pace may be a behavioral response to compensate for the significant increase in perception of effort induced by locomotor muscle fatigue.

Allen DG, Lamb GD, Westerblad H (2008) Skeletal muscle fatigue: cellular mechanisms. Physiol Rev 88(1):287–332. doi:10.1152/physrev.00015.2007 PubMedCrossRef

Amann M, Calbet JA (2008) Convective oxygen transport and fatigue. J Appl Physiol 104(3):861–870. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.01008.2007 PubMedCrossRef

Amann M, Dempsey JA (2008) Locomotor muscle fatigue modifies central motor drive in healthy humans and imposes a limitation to exercise performance. J Physiol 586(1):161–173. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.2007.141838 PubMedCrossRef

Amann M, Hopkins WG, Marcora SM (2008) Similar sensitivity of time to exhaustion and time-trial time to changes in endurance. Med Sci Sports Exerc 40(3):574–578. doi:10.1249/MSS.0b013e31815e728f PubMedCrossRef

Amann M, Proctor LT, Sebranek JJ, Pegelow DF, Dempsey JA (2009) Opioid-mediated muscle afferents inhibit central motor drive and limit peripheral muscle fatigue development in humans. J Physiol 587(Pt 1):271–283. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.2008.163303 PubMedCrossRef

Amann M, Blain GM, Proctor LT, Sebranek JJ, Pegelow DF, Dempsey JA (2011) Implications of group III and IV muscle afferents for high intensity endurance exercise performance in humans. J Physiol 589(21):5299–5309. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.2011.213769 PubMed

Atkinson G, Wilson D, Eubank M (2004) Effects of music on work-rate distribution during a cycling time trial. Int J Sports Med 25(8):611–615. doi:10.1055/s-2004-815715 PubMedCrossRef

Borg GA (1998) Borg’s perceived exertion and pain scales. Human Kinetics, Champaign

Brehm JW, Self EA (1989) The intensity of motivation. Annu Rev Psychol 40:109–131. doi:10.1146/annurev.ps.40.020189.000545 PubMedCrossRef

Burt DG, Twist C (2011) The effects of exercise-induced muscle damage on cycling time-trial performance. J Strength Cond Res 25(8):2185–2192. doi:10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181e86148 PubMedCrossRef

Clark SA, Bourdon PC, Schmidt W, Singh B, Cable G, Onus KJ, Woolford SM, Stanef T, Gore CJ, Aughey RJ (2007) The effect of acute simulated moderate altitude on power, performance and pacing strategies in well-trained cyclists. Eur J Appl Physiol 102(1):45–55. doi:10.1007/s00421-007-0554-0 PubMedCrossRef

Corbett J, Barwood MJ, Ouzounoglou A, Thelwell R, Dicks M (2012) Influence of competition on performance and pacing during cycling exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc 44(3):509–515. doi:10.1249/MSS.0b013e31823378b1 PubMedCrossRef

de Koning JJ, Foster C, Bakkum A, Kloppenburg S, Thiel C, Joseph T, Cohen J, Porcari JP (2011) Regulation of pacing strategy during athletic competition. PLoS One 6(1):e15863. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0015863 PubMedCrossRef

de Morree HM, Marcora SM (2010) The face of effort: frowning muscle activity reflects effort during a physical task. Biol Psychol 85(3):377–382. doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2010.08.009 PubMedCrossRef

de Morree HM, Klein C, Marcora SM (2012) Perception of effort reflects central motor command during movement execution. Psychophysiology 49(9):1242–1253. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8986.2012.01399.x PubMedCrossRef

Dugas JP, Oosthuizen U, Tucker R, Noakes TD (2009) Rates of fluid ingestion alter pacing but not thermoregulatory responses during prolonged exercise in hot and humid conditions with appropriate convective cooling. Eur J Appl Physiol 105(1):69–80. doi:10.1007/s00421-008-0876-6 PubMedCrossRef

Froyd C, Millet GY, Noakes TD (2013) The development of peripheral fatigue and short-term recovery during self-paced high-intensity exercise. J Physiol 591(Pt 5):1339–1346. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.2012.245316 PubMedCrossRef

Gagnon P, Bussieres JS, Ribeiro F, Gagnon SL, Saey D, Gagne N, Provencher S, Maltais F (2012) Influences of spinal anesthesia on exercise tolerance in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 186(7):606–615. doi:10.1164/rccm.201203-0404OC PubMedCrossRef

Gregory JE, Brockett CL, Morgan DL, Whitehead NP, Proske U (2002) Effect of eccentric muscle contractions on Golgi tendon organ responses to passive and active tension in the cat. J Physiol 538(Pt 1):209–218. doi:10.1013/jphysiol.2001.012785 PubMedCrossRef

Gregory JE, Morgan DL, Proske U (2004) Responses of muscle spindles following a series of eccentric contractions. Exp Brain Res 157(2):234–240. doi:10.1007/s00221-004-1838-9 PubMedCrossRef

Hamlin MJ, Quigley BM (2001) Quadriceps concentric and eccentric exercise 1: changes in contractile and electrical activity following eccentric and concentric exercise. J Sci Med Sport 4(1):88–103PubMedCrossRef

Hermens HJ, Freriks B, Merletti R, Stegeman D, Blok J, Rau G, Disselhorst-Klug C, Hägg G (1999) European recommendations for surface electromyography, 2nd edn. Roessingh Research and Development B.V., Enschede

Holm S (1979) A simple sequentially rejective multiple test procedure. Scand J Stat 6:65–70

Kuipers H, Verstappen FT, Keizer HA, Geurten P, van Kranenburg G (1985) Variability of aerobic performance in the laboratory and its physiologic correlates. Int J Sports Med 6(4):197–201. doi:10.1055/s-2008-1025839 PubMedCrossRef

MacIntosh BR, Shahi MR (2011) A peripheral governor regulates muscle contraction. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab 36(1):1–11. doi:10.1139/H10-073 PubMedCrossRef

Marcora S (2010) Counterpoint: Afferent feedback from fatigued locomotor muscles is not an important determinant of endurance exercise performance. J Appl Physiol 108(2):454–456. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00976.2009a (discussion 456–457)PubMedCrossRef

Marcora SM, Bosio A (2007) Effect of exercise-induced muscle damage on endurance running performance in humans. Scand J Med Sci Sports 17(6):662–671. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0838.2006.00627.x PubMedCrossRef

Marcora SM, Bosio A, de Morree HM (2008) Locomotor muscle fatigue increases cardiorespiratory responses and reduces performance during intense cycling exercise independently from metabolic stress. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 294(3):R874–R883. doi:10.1152/ajpregu.00678.2007 PubMedCrossRef

Millet GY, Lepers R (2004) Alterations of neuromuscular function after prolonged running, cycling and skiing exercises. Sports Med 34(2):105–116PubMedCrossRef

Nielsen JS, Madsen K, Jorgensen LV, Sahlin K (2005) Effects of lengthening contraction on calcium kinetics and skeletal muscle contractility in humans. Acta Physiol Scand 184(3):203–214. doi:10.1111/j.1365-201X.2005.01449.x PubMedCrossRef

Noble B, Robertson R (1996) Perceived exertion. Human Kinetics, Champaign

Norton KH, Gallagher KM, Smith SA, Querry RG, Welch-O’Connor RM, Raven PB (1999) Carotid baroreflex function during prolonged exercise. J Appl Physiol 87(1):339–347PubMed

Peiffer JJ, Abbiss CR (2011) Influence of environmental temperature on 40 km cycling time-trial performance. Int J Sports Physiol Perform 6(2):208–220PubMed

Romer LM, Polkey MI (2008) Exercise-induced respiratory muscle fatigue: implications for performance. J Appl Physiol 104(3):879–888. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.01157.2007 PubMedCrossRef

Rotto DM, Kaufman MP (1988) Effect of metabolic products of muscular contraction on discharge of group III and IV afferents. J Appl Physiol 64(6):2306–2313PubMed

Skurvydas A, Jascaninas J, Zachovajevas P (2000) Changes in height of jump, maximal voluntary contraction force and low-frequency fatigue after 100 intermittent or continuous jumps with maximal intensity. Acta Physiol Scand 169(1):55–62. doi:10.1046/j.1365-201x.2000.00692.x PubMedCrossRef

Skurvydas A, Dudoniene V, Kalvenas A, Zuoza A (2002) Skeletal muscle fatigue in long-distance runners, sprinters and untrained men after repeated drop jumps performed at maximal intensity. Scand J Med Sci Sports 12(1):34–39PubMedCrossRef

Smith SA, Querry RG, Fadel PJ, Gallagher KM, Stromstad M, Ide K, Raven PB, Secher NH (2003) Partial blockade of skeletal muscle somatosensory afferents attenuates baroreflex resetting during exercise in humans. J Physiol 551(Pt 3):1013–1021PubMedCrossRef

St Clair Gibson A, Noakes TD (2004) Evidence for complex system integration and dynamic neural regulation of skeletal muscle recruitment during exercise in humans. Br J Sports Med 38(6):797–806. doi:10.1136/bjsm.2003.009852 PubMedCrossRef

St Clair Gibson A, Lambert EV, Rauch LH, Tucker R, Baden DA, Foster C, Noakes TD (2006) The role of information processing between the brain and peripheral physiological systems in pacing and perception of effort. Sports Med 36(8):705–722PubMedCrossRef

Tucker R, Noakes TD (2009) The physiological regulation of pacing strategy during exercise: a critical review. Br J Sports Med 43(6):e1. doi:10.1136/bjsm.2009.057562 PubMedCrossRef

Twist C, Eston RG (2009) The effect of exercise-induced muscle damage on perceived exertion and cycling endurance performance. Eur J Appl Physiol 105(4):559–567. doi:10.1007/s00421-008-0935-z PubMedCrossRef

Vickers AJ (2001) Time course of muscle soreness following different types of exercise. BMC Musculoskelet Disord 2:5PubMedCrossRef

Wiles JD, Coleman D, Tegerdine M, Swaine IL (2006) The effects of caffeine ingestion on performance time, speed and power during a laboratory-based 1 km cycling time-trial. J Sports Sci 24(11):1165–1171. doi:10.1080/02640410500457687 PubMedCrossRef

Wright RA (2008) Refining the prediction of effort: Brehm’s distinction between potential motivation and motivation intensity. Soc Pers Psychol Compass 2(2):682–701. doi:10.1111/j.1751-9004.2008.00093.x CrossRef

Title: Effects of isolated locomotor muscle fatigue on pacing and time trial performance
Authors: Helma M. de Morree
Samuele M. Marcora
Publication date: 01-09-2013
Publisher: Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Published in: European Journal of Applied Physiology / Issue 9/2013
Print ISSN: 1439-6319
Electronic ISSN: 1439-6327
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-013-2673-0

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Effects of isolated locomotor muscle fatigue on pacing and time trial performance

Abstract

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 9/2013

Erratum to: Haemodynamic responses to dehydration in the resting and exercising human leg

Weight, muscle and bone loss during space flight: another perspective

Endurance training enhances LXRα gene expression in Wistar male rats

The carbon monoxide re-breathing method can underestimate Hbmass due to incomplete blood mixing

Can muscle shortening alone, explain the energy cost of muscle contraction in vivo?

A meta-analytic approach to quantify the dose–response relationship between melatonin and core temperature