Key result
Specific training regimes improve exercise economy and lactate threshold in elite athletes despite stable VO2max.
Why the study?
Do specific exercise training regimes improve endurance exercise performance in athletes?
Do specific exercise training regimes improve endurance exercise performance in athletes?
While V̇o2max remains stable, endurance athletes can improve performance through specific training that enhances exercise economy, lactate threshold, and critical power.
May inform periodization toward economy and thresholds in elite endurance athletes; leaves open causal effects beyond Level 5 evidence.
Our objective is to highlight some key physiological determinants of endurance exercise performance and to discuss how these can be further improved. V̇o2max remains remarkably stable throughout an athletic career. By contrast, exercise economy, lactate threshold, and critical power may be improved in world-class athletes by specific exercise training regimes and/or with more years of training.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Lundby et al. (2015) studied this question. Specific exercise training regimes and increased training years can improve exercise economy, lactate threshold, and critical power in world-class athletes, while VO2max remains remarkably stable.
Synapse has enriched 4 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: