Physiological characteristics related to endurance running performance in female distance runners

The purpose of the present study was to determine the relationships between running velocity (v) in a 3000-m race and various physiological parameters. The parameters measured among 57 female distance runners during a treadmill running test were v at the lactate threshold (v-Tlac), oxygen uptake (VO2) at the lactate threshold (VO2 at Tlac), v at the onset of blood lactate accumulation (v-OBLA), VO2 at OBLA, running economy (steady-state VO2 at a standard v of 4 m s-1), maximal oxygen uptake (VO2 max) and v at VO2 max (v-VO2 max). The v-OBLA was the blood lactate variable with the strongest correlation with v in a 3000-m race (r = 0.78, P < 0.001). The second strongest correlation was with v-Tlac (r = 0.77, P < 0.001). Although v-VO2 max was strongly correlated with v over 3000 m (r = 0.75, P < 0.001), further analysis by stepwise multiple regression indicated that a combination of v-OBLA, VO2 at Tlac and v-Tlac could account for 73.2% of the variability in v over 3000 m, whereas v-OBLA on its own explained 61.5%. Blood lactate variables can account for a reasonably large part of the variance in v over 3000 m. Also, v-VO2 max can be used as a non-invasive predictor of distance running performance.