Effect of Short-Duration High-Intensity Upper-Body Pre-Load Component on Performance among High-Level Cyclists.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of upper-body high-intensity exercise priming on subsequent leg exercise performance. Specifically, to compare maximal 4000 m cycling performance with upper-body pre-load (MPT high ) and common warm-up (MPT low ). In this case, 15 high-level cyclists (23.3 ± 3.6 years; 181 ± 7 cm; 76.2 ± 10.0 kg; V ˙ O 2max : 65.4 ± 6.7 mL·kg -1 ·min -1 ) participated in the study attending three laboratory sessions, completing an incremental test and both experimental protocols. In MPT high , warm-up was added by a 25 s high-intensity all-out arm crank effort to the traditional 20-min aerobic warm-up. Both 4000 m maximal bouts started with a 12 s all-out start. Heart rate, blood lactate concentration [La) and spirometric data were measured and analyzed. Overall MPT high time was slower by 5.3 ± 1.2 s ( p < 0.05). [La] at the start was 5.5 ± 1.5 mmol·L -1 higher for MPT high ( p < 0.001) reducing anaerobic energy contribution which was higher in MPT low during the first and third 1000 m split ( p < 0.05). Similarly, MPT low maintained higher total average power during the entire performance ( p < 0.05, d = 0.7). Although the MPT high condition performed less effectively due to decreased anaerobic capacity, pre-load effect may have the potential to enhance performance at longer distances.