Critical power derived from a 3‐min all‐out test predicts 16.1‐km road time‐trial performance.

It has been shown that the critical power (CP) in cycling estimated using a novel 3‐min all‐out protocol is reliable and closely matches the CP derived from conventional procedures. The purpose of this study was to assess the predictive validity of the all‐out test CP estimate. We hypothesised that the all‐out test CP would be significantly correlated with 16.1‐km road time‐trial (TT) performance and more strongly correlated with performance than the gas exchange threshold (GET), respiratory compensation point (RCP) and V̇O2 max. Ten club‐level male cyclists (mean±SD: age 33.8±8.2 y, body mass 73.8±4.3 kg, V̇O2 max 60±4 ml·kg−1·min−1) performed a 10‐mile road TT, a ramp incremental test to exhaustion, and two 3‐min all‐out tests, the first of which served as familiarisation. The 16.1‐km TT performance (27.1±1.2 min) was significantly correlated with the CP (309±34 W; r=−0.83, P<0.01) and total work done during the all‐out test (70.9±6.5 kJ; r=−0.86, P<0.01), the ramp incremental test peak power (433±30 W; r=−0.75, P<0.05) and the RCP (315±29 W; r=−0.68, P<0.05), but not with GET (151±32 W; r=−0.21) or the V̇O2 max (4.41±0.25 L·min−1; r=−0.60). These data provide evidence for the predictive validity and practical performance relevance of the 3‐min all‐out test. The 3‐min all‐out test CP may represent a useful addition to the battery of tests employed by applied sport physiologists or coaches to track fitness and predict performance in atheletes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]