Abstract
The present study was performed to compare various individual muscular efficiency indices, i. e., gross (GE), net (NE), work (WE), and delta (DE), during arm cranking ergometer (ACE) and wheelchair ergometer (WERG) exercise at the same relative exercise intensities. Following a maximal test on both the ACE and WERG, 15 able-bodied subjects completed 4 submaximal bouts at 0, 40, 55 and 70 % of the mode-specific V˙O2peak. The peak power output and V˙O2 values were significantly higher with ACE than WERG maximal exercise. As a consequence, the power output imposed during WERG submaximal bouts was significantly lower compared to ACE submaximal bouts. ACE exercise was found to elicit a significantly higher (p < 0.001) V˙O2 (16 to 28 vs 14 to 23 ml × min-1 × kg-1), GE (9 to 11 vs 6 to 9 %) and NE (14 to 13 vs 10 to 11 %) compared to WERG exercise at power output from 40 to 70 % V˙O2peak, respectively. However, WE (17 to 15 vs 17 to 14 % at 40 to 55 % V˙O2peak) and DE (12 to 13 vs 12 to 12 % at Δ40 - 55 % to Δ55 - 70 % V˙O2peak) values were similar between ACE and WERG exercise. The lower GE and NE observed during WERG compared to ACE exercise could be explained by the biomechanical disadvantages of the hand-rim WERG pattern movement. These findings also supported that the different indices of efficiency influenced the interpretation of the comparison between ACE and WERG propulsion.
Key words
Maximal exercise - submaximal exercise - gross efficiency - net efficiency - work efficiency - delta efficiency - relative intensity - healthy male subjects
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F. Hintzy, PhD
Laboratoire de Modélisation des Activités Sportives (LMAS) · Département STAPS, UFR CISM
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