Development and field validation of an omni-domain power-duration model

ABSTRACT

Purpose: To validate and compare a novel model based on the critical power (CP) concept that describes the entire domain of maximal mean power (MMP) data from cyclists.

Methods: An omni-domain power-duration (OmPD) model was derived whereby the rate of Wʹ expenditure is bound by maximum sprint power and the power at prolonged durations declines from CP log-linearly. The three-parameter CP (3CP) and exponential (Exp) models were likewise extended with the log-linear decay function (Om3CP and OmExp). Each model bounds Wʹ using a different nonconstant function, Wʹeff (effective Wʹ). Models were fit to MMP data from nine cyclists who also completed four time-trials (TTs).

Results: The OmPD and Om3CP residuals (4 ± 1%) were smaller than the OmExp residuals (6 ± 2%; P < 0.001). Wʹeff predicted by the OmPD model was stable between 120–1,800 s, whereas it varied for the Om3CP and OmExp models. TT prediction errors were not different between models (7 ± 5%, 8 ± 5%, 7 ± 6%; P = 0.914).

Conclusion: The OmPD offers similar or superior goodness-of-fit and better theoretical properties compared to the other models, such that it best extends the CP concept to short-sprint and prolonged-endurance performance.

KEYWORDS:

• Athletic performance
• critical power model
• power-duration profile
• maximal mean power data
• wʹ
• mathematical modelling
• anaerobic threshold
• cycling

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Dr. Nathan Townsend and Dr. Philip Skiba for critical proofreading of the manuscript and Mark Liversedge for help with implementing the model in Golden Cheetah.

The results of this study are presented clearly, honestly, and without fabrication, falsification, or inappropriate data manipulation.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Supplementary Material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed here.