Influence of Torque and Cadence on Power Output Production in Cyclists

  1. Leo, Peter 8
  2. Mateo-March, Manuel 111
  3. Valenzuela, Pedro L. 210
  4. Muriel, Xabier 12
  5. Gandía-Soriano, Alexis 3
  6. Giorgi, Andrea 45
  7. Zabala, Mikel 9
  8. Barranco-Gil, David 1
  9. Mujika, Iñigo 67
  10. Pallarés, Jesús G. 10
  11. Lucia, Alejandro 12
  1. 1 Universidad Europea de Madrid
    info

    Universidad Europea de Madrid

    Madrid, España

    ROR https://ror.org/04dp46240

  2. 2 Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Hospital 12 de Octubre
    info

    Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Hospital 12 de Octubre

    Madrid, España

  3. 3 Universitat de València
    info

    Universitat de València

    Valencia, España

    ROR https://ror.org/043nxc105

  4. 4 Medical and Performance Staff, Drone Hopper-Androni Giocattoli Professional Cycling Team, Turín, Italy
  5. 5 Complex Operational Unit for Functional Recovery and Reeducation, Azienda USL Toscana Sud-Est, Arezzo, Italy
  6. 6 Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea
    info

    Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea

    Lejona, España

    ROR https://ror.org/000xsnr85

  7. 7 Universidad Finis Terrae
    info

    Universidad Finis Terrae

    Santiago de Chile, Chile

    ROR https://ror.org/0225snd59

  8. 8 University of Innsbruck
    info

    University of Innsbruck

    Innsbruck, Austria

    ROR https://ror.org/054pv6659

  9. 9 Universidad de Granada
    info

    Universidad de Granada

    Granada, España

    ROR https://ror.org/04njjy449

  10. 10 Universidad de Alcalá
    info

    Universidad de Alcalá

    Alcalá de Henares, España

    ROR https://ror.org/04pmn0e78

  11. 11 Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche
    info

    Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche

    Elche, España

    ROR https://ror.org/01azzms13

  12. 12 Universidad de Murcia
    info

    Universidad de Murcia

    Murcia, España

    ROR https://ror.org/03p3aeb86

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Revista:
International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance

ISSN: 1555-0265,  1555-0273

Año de publicación: 2022

Páginas: 1-10

Tipo: Artículo

DOI: 10.1123/IJSPP.2022-0233 GOOGLE SCHOLAR lock_openAcceso abierto editor

Otras publicaciones en: International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance

Resumen

Purpose: No information is available on the torque/cadence relationship in road cyclists. We aimed to establish whether this relationship differs between cyclists of different performance levels or team roles. Methods: Mean maximal power (MMP) output data from 177 riders were obtained from 2012 to 2021 from training and competitions. Cyclists were categorized according to their performance level (world-tour [WT, n = 68], procontinental [PC, n = 63], or under 23 [U23, n = 46]) and team role (time trialists [n = 12], all-rounders [n = 94], climbers [n = 64], or team leaders [n = 7]). Results: A significant interaction effect was found for absolute and relative MMP (P < .001), with higher values in PC than WT for short (5–60 s) efforts and the opposite trend for longer durations. MMP was also greater in PC than in U23 for short efforts (30–60 s), with WT and PC attaining higher MMP than U23 for longer bouts (5–60 min). A significant interaction effect was found for cadence (P = .007, but with no post hoc differences) and absolute (P = .010) and relative torque (P = .002), with PC and WT showing significantly higher torque (all P < .05) than U23 for 5- to 60-minute efforts, yet with no differences between the former 2 performance levels. No interaction effect between team roles was found for cadence (P = .185) or relative torque (P = .559), but a significant interaction effect was found for absolute torque (P < .001), with all-rounders attaining significantly higher values than climbers for 5-second to 5-minute efforts. Conclusions: Differences in MMP between cycling performance levels and rider types are dependent on torque rather than cadence, which might support the role of torque development in performance.

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