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JAMIE F. BURR1,*, C. TAYLOR DRURY2, ADAM C. IVEY2, & DARREN E.R. WARBURTON1
1
Kinesiology, Cardiovascular Physiology and Rehabilitation Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British
Columbia, Canada, and 2Experimental Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Downloaded by [University of Prince Edward Island], [Jamie Burr] at 05:04 02 October 2012
Abstract
Mountain biking is a popular recreational pursuit and the physiological demands of cross-country style riding have been well
documented. However, little is known regarding the growing discipline of gravity-assisted downhill cycling. We characterised
the physiological demands of downhill mountain biking under typical riding conditions. Riding oxygen consumption (V_ O2)
and heart rate (HR) were measured on 11 male and eight female experienced downhill cyclists and compared with data during a
standardised incremental to maximum (V_ O2max) exercise test. The mean V_ O2 while riding was 23.1 + 6.9 ml kg71 min71
or 52 + 14% of V_ O2max with corresponding heart rates of 146 + 11 bpm (80 + 6% HRmax). Over 65% of the ride was in a
zone at or above an intensity level associated with improvements in health-related fitness. However, the participants’ heart rates
and ratings of perceived exertion were artificially inflated in comparison with the actual metabolic demands of the downhill ride.
Substantial muscular fatigue was evident in grip strength, which decreased 5.4 + 9.4 kg (5.5 + 11.2%, P ¼ 0.03) post-ride.
Participation in downhill mountain biking is associated with significant physiological demands, which are in a range associated
with beneficial effects on health-related fitness.
*The corresponding author is currently at: Human Performance and Health Laboratory, University of PEI, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada.
Correspondence: Jamie F Burr, University of PEI, Applied Human Sciences – Kinesiology, Human Performance and Health Laboratory, Charlottetown, PE,
Canada. Email: jburr@upei.ca
ISSN 0264-0414 print/ISSN 1466-447X online Ó 2012 Taylor & Francis
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2012.718091
2 J. F. Burr et al.
written informed consent was provided by all partici- measures recorded. Left and right hand averages were
pants following both written and verbal explanation of summed to arrive at a combined grip strength score.
procedures. Prior to participation, all volunteers were
pre-screened for safe exercise participation using the
Assessment of physiological demands during DH riding
Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire Plus (PAR-
Qþ) (Warburton, Jamnik, Bredin, & Gledhill, 2011). During testing, ambient temperatures varied be-
tween and throughout the days, as well as at different
elevations on the mountain. Outdoor temperature
Experimental design
ranged from 9–188C at the base (650 m) and 7–98C
We used a case-control study design, with each at mid-mountain, the highest point from which
participant acting as his or her own control under participants initiated their ride. Although some trails
standardised conditions at rest and during a graded remained damp from previous precipitation, all
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exercise test. All testing for each participant took testing occurred during dry outdoor conditions
place on a single day and is described in detail to with barometric pressure measured inside the testing
follow. In brief, baseline fitness and anthropometric facility ranging from 750–752 mmHg. Participants
measures were collected at rest, prior to any activity. were instructed to choose a lap that best represented
Participants then completed a representative DH a ‘typical ride’ similar to that which they would
ride, wherein physiological variables were measured normally select when ‘free-riding’, and appropriate
continuously (where possible) or immediately fol- to their fitness, technical skill, and ability. All rides
lowing cessation, to characterise the DH riding- were initiated at the mid-mountain point (1020 m),
induced physiological responses. After a rest period with the only trail selection restrictions being that the
of approximately 45 minutes, each participant then chosen route had to be continuous from start to
completed a graded exercise test, allowing compar- finish with no rest breaks, and it must end at the
ison of ride-induced physiological effects to a bottom of the mountain (650 m) where our research
controlled exercise stimulus. team was waiting. Riders were given this latitude to
select their own trails and terrain, as our purpose was
to characterise DH riding as it actually occurs. As
Physical demands analysis trail conditions, pitch, terrain features, and rider skill
likely had direct impacts on the physical demands of
Baseline measures
riding, it was our intention to avoid introducing bias
Baseline testing occurred prior to the initiation of by forcing all riders to complete the same course,
riding, including warm-up laps. Testing took place in which could have been too easy for some riders and
a dedicated research building, which was located at too hard (or dangerous) for others. At the end of
mid-mountain (1020 m). All altitude measures each ride, participants were asked to report the
reported are based on known points on the mountain names of the trails they selected, and the average trail
and are expressed as metres above sea-level. Partici- difficulty using the common green (easy), blue
pant height was measured to the nearest 0.5 cm with a (intermediate), black (advanced) and double black
slide scale stadiometer (SECA, Hanover, MD) while (expert) rating system used to mark resort trails.
the participant stood barefoot with their heels These ratings were converted to a scale of 1–4 for
together and touching the rear base of the stand. analysis.
Weight was measured with a minimum of clothing, Participants were encouraged to wear all typical
using a digital scale that was re-calibrated prior to safety gear, which included a ‘full-face’ helmet,
each use (Tanita TBF-300R WA, Arlington Heights, goggles, gloves, elbow pads, knee/shin pads and
IL). Body composition was estimated using bioelec- bike shoes. Some participants also chose to wear bike
trical impedance on the same device, with pre- specific shorts or pants and torso protection. Only
programmed corrections for height, gender and one participant used clip-in style pedals, all other
‘athletic body type’. Resting blood pressure was participants used flat platform style pedals.
measured following 5–10 min of seated rest, using a The acute cardiorespiratory demands of riding
standard sphygmomanometer on the upper left arm. were assessed using a combination of heart rate and
Pre-exercise heart rate was measured simultaneously metabolic monitoring. Prior to the initiation of a
using a Polar heart rate monitor (RS800cx, Polar ride, participants were outfitted with the same polar
Electro, Tampere, Finland), which was worn for the heart rate monitor used for pre-exercise heart rate
duration of all exercise tests. Grip strength was measures. Oxygen consumption was measured using
measured using a handgrip dynamometer (Almedic, a small metabolic computer (Cosmed, K4b2, Rome,
Montreal Canada), adjusted to the second knuckle of Italy) that was affixed to the participant’s back using
the hand. Participants were given two trials per hand, the commercially available harness. Gas and flow
in an alternating fashion, with an average of the two sampling lines passed from the computer, over the
4 J. F. Burr et al.
post-ride, as well as between measured and predicted set a priori at P 5 0.05. Data are presented as
responses of heart rate, blood pressure and RPE. mean + SD.
Delta grip scores (i.e. change from pre- to post-ride)
as an indicator of hand/arm fatigue were calculated to
Results
determine if a relationship existed between a partici-
pant’s rating of perceived exertion and hand fatigue The individual routes participants selected as a
using Pearson correlation. Pearson correlation was ‘typical ride’ required an average riding duration of
also used to determine if relationships existed 8.8 + 2.4 min, with a vertical descent of approxi-
between the level of trail difficulty or years of riding mately 370 m. The routes selected had an average
experience, with measures of RPE and metabolic ride difficulty of 2.5 (+ 0.5) out of 4. Baseline data
demand while riding. Significance for all tests was from the pre-ride testing and graded exercise test
(V_ O2max) are presented in Table II, with comparison
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Table II. Participant baseline physiological data, with ride-related measures that were collected continuously during the ride, or immediately
following (BP and grip strength). Predicted values for RPE, heart rate, and blood pressure, which were projected from individual
physiological responses during a standardised graded exercise test (GXT) are included for comparison with actual values measured in
conjunction with a DH ride.
RPE (6–20) 6 13 + 1 10 + 3
Heart Rate (bpm) 65 + 13 146 + 11 127 + 18
SBP (mmHg) 122 + 9 144 + 12 136 + 26
DBP (mmHg) 79 + 5 77 + 8 79 + 8
MAP (mmHg) 93 + 5 99 + 6 –
Grip Strength (kg) 97.6 + 25.3 92.2 + 24 –
Baseline versus ride-related: *P 0.05, **P 0.001; ride-related versus GXT standardised , P 0.001, GXT ¼ Graded exercise Test,
SBP ¼ Systolic blood pressure, DBP ¼ diastolic blood pressure, RPE ¼ rating of perceived exertion (NB: True RPE at rest was not collected,
but is interpreted as 6 which is ‘no exertion at all’), Grip strength ¼ both hands combined. Data are presented as mean + SD.
6 J. F. Burr et al.
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Figure 3. The cumulative proportion of a downhill mountain bike ride spent in each 10% intensity range above the minimal level associated
with changes in health-related fitness. This breakdown of proportional intensity has important prescriptive implications considering that
higher intensity exercise requires shorter durations/frequencies to achieve similar effects.
between riding V_ O2 and the level of trail difficulty physiological demand associated with DH riding
(r ¼ 0.44, P ¼ 0.05). would place this activity into an intensity category
Comparison of baseline grip strength with post associated with improvements in health-related fit-
ride grip strength revealed a significant decrease ness according to current ACSM (Garber et al.,
(5.4 + 9.4 kg or 5.5 + 11.2%, P ¼ 0.03), 2011) and Canadian physical activity guidelines
indicative of a riding imposed fatigue. Riding heart (Tremblay et al., 2011).
rate and RPE both demonstrated significant infla- In the present investigation, we considered only
tions compared with oxygen consumption-matched the acute physical demands of one DH ‘lap’ while
levels recorded during the incremental exercise test riding, which was approximately 9 min in length.
(heart rate þ 22 bpm, P ¼ 0.001, RPE ¼ þ3, P Although one lap by itself would almost qualify as a
40.001). Post-riding systolic blood pressure was meaningful bout of physical activity when consider-
elevated from baseline (24 + 11 mmHg), but com- ing recommended exercise duration parameters, it is
pared with the predicted increase in blood pressure important to note DH cyclists typically do not stop
(from the incremental exercise test), post-ride blood riding after one lap. In reality, many laps are
pressure was not significantly inflated. As can be seen combined in a consecutive manner, sometimes
in Figure 4(a), Participant’s RPE while riding was linking laps with a short break in between (i.e. from
strongly associated with years of riding experience (r mountain peak to mid-station, then mid-station to
¼ 0.74, P 4 0.001), whereas a moderate strength base). In this way, DH cyclists will often ride for
relationship (r ¼ 0.48, P ¼ 0.04) existed between many consecutive hours comparable to the activity
RPE and accumulated hand fatigue (Figure 4(b)). patterns of alpine skiers and snowboarders.
No relationship was found relating participant’s RPE Similar to more traditional exercise modalities in
to the difficulty level of the trail selected; however, which it has been demonstrated that participants self-
self-reported skill was related to the difficulty of the select a work intensity of *60% V_ O2max or 11–14
trail selected (r ¼ 0.54, P ¼ 0.02). RPE (Dishman, Farquhar, & Cureton, 1994),
participants in the present investigation rode at an
intensity of 52% of V_ O2max and 13 RPE. It is
Discussion
important to note, however, that individual riders
This is the first examination of the physiological selected differing levels of exercise intensity (espe-
demands of DH mountain biking using measures of cially at the high and low end of the range) and that
heart rate, blood pressure, RPE, strength and oxygen this intensity selection could be affected by overall
consumption. We demonstrate clear evidence of fitness, skill, efficiency, terrain condition, comfort
appreciable physical demand. In general, the acute level, or a variety of other factors. On average, DH
Physiology of downhill cycling 7
and cardiac output (Helfant, De Villa, & Meister, and riding V_ O2 with the difficulty level of the chosen
1971). In the present study, we demonstrated that route, suggesting that better riders sought more
heart rate responses were significantly elevated difficult terrain. Given these findings, it appears that
compared with the heart rate at a matched V_ O2 the demands of DH riding vary according to the skill
during stationary cycling. It is likely, that the work of level of the rider, and their willingness/ability to accept
handgrip exercise contributed to this increase in risk. Further investigation of the influence of technical
heart rate, and based on subjective reports of riders skill and experience on riding demands would be
we speculate this effect may have been further beneficial to understand fully the anticipated training
augmented as a result of a particularly forceful grip effects across the spectrum of participants.
of the handlebars to maintain control. It is also As noted above, participation in downhill moun-
possible that heart rate was inflated as a result of tain bike riding is not without risks. Although the
other isometric contractions necessary for DH focus of the current study is to characterise the
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riding, including core stabilisation (potential Valsalva physiological demands of participation in reference
manoeuvres) and standing on the pedals. Similarly, to health and fitness, it is important to note that the
we observed an increase in the participant’s RPE modifiable risks of DH mountain bike riding must be
compared with matched stationary cycling intensi- considered when weighing the risk–reward of parti-
ties, suggesting that participation was perceived as cipation. Among these risks are factors such as
being harder than the metabolic demands indicate. possible cellular damage from eccentric muscle
Importantly, this comparison of perceived exertion is loading, fine particulate inhalation resulting from
drawn between a participant’s rating while riding and following other riders closely, and traumatic collisions
his/her rating while performing standardised erg- with natural objects or riders. Given the presented
ometer exercise; thus the subjective assessment of evidence of decrements in handgrip strength, it
what constitutes ‘hard work’ for that individual appears possible that a rider’s ability to maintain
should be similar. We believe the observed inflation control of their bicycle may be compromised after
in RPE relates to the isometric gripping and physical sustained riding, although the influence of this change
exertion of relatively small upper body musculature. is likely modified greatly by fitness, technical skill, and
This supposition is supported by our finding of a experience. Investigation of the safety of DH riding
relationship between RPE and accumulated hand offers an area for future research to determine if
grip fatigue. accidents occur as a result of accumulated fatigue, or
There was no observed increase in post-riding if riders appropriately adjust their route selection and
blood pressure in the same manner as heart rate and riding style to accommodate these changes. Thus,
RPE. However, as a result of methodological despite the general observation that DH riding
constraints it must be recognised that the reported represents a physical activity stimulus capable of
blood pressure responses represent weaker evidence stimulating beneficial changes in overall health-related
of DH riding physiological effects compared with the fitness for most participants, caution in participation is
heart rate and RPE data, which were collected using warranted, particularly for certain segments of the
highly reliable measurement techniques during the population that may be at increased risk.
DH ride. Regardless, the cardiovascular response
during DH riding is an area of research deserving of
Conclusions
further attention, as the interactions of blood
pressure and heart rate (or the rate pressure product) Recreational DH mountain biking is of moderate to
are important indicators of myocardial oxygen vigorous aerobic exercise intensity, with evidence of a
demand (Gobel, Norstrom, Nelson, Jorgensen, & stimulatory effect on heart rate and perceived
Wang, 1978). If blood pressure proves to be exertion above the documented riding V_ O2 of the
significantly elevated above the metabolic demands exercise. As such, heart rate or RPE alone are not
of riding in a similar manner to heart rate, this could sufficient measures to characterise the physical
have important health implications for persons at an demands of participation in this sport, as has
elevated risk for ischemic cardiovascular events. traditionally been employed in the past. The
Participant experience was strongly associated evidence clearly demonstrates that gravity-assisted
with both the subjective (RPE) and objective (V_ O2) mountain biking is associated with legitimate phy-
physical demand while riding, such that participants siological demands, which are in a range expected to
with more years of experience worked harder while be associated with beneficial effects on health-related
riding. It seems likely that more experienced partici- fitness. In addition, there is preliminary evidence of
pants were willing to push themselves harder and/or fatigue inducing muscular strength challenges, spe-
ride more aggressive terrain without fear of losing cifically related to hand grip strength. Further
control. In support of this theory, we found evidence investigation of the effects of DH cycling on
of associations between both self-described skill level cardiovascular function and the strength demands/
Physiology of downhill cycling 9
force contributions of other muscle groups while Garber, C.E., Blissmer, B., Deschenes, M.R., Franklin, B.A.,
riding are warranted. The results of this study are Lamonte, M.J., Lee, I.M., Nieman, D.C., & Swain, D.P.
(2011). American College of Sports Medicine position stand.
useful for understanding the physical demands of Quantity and quality of exercise for developing and maintaining
this popular non-traditional form of cycling from cardiorespiratory, musculoskeletal, and neuromotor fitness in
both health-related fitness and performance-related apparently healthy adults: guidance for prescribing exercise.
perspectives. This information can be used for Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 43, 1334–1359.
Gobel, F.L., Norstrom, L.A., Nelson, R.R., Jorgensen, C.R., &
training-related purposes and incorporating non-
Wang, Y. (1978). The rate-pressure product as an index of
traditional exercise into prescriptive recommenda- myocardial oxygen consumption during exercise in patients
tions for persons who may not be motivated by more with angina pectoris. Circulation, 57, 549–556.
traditional forms of physical activity including XC or Haskell, W.L., Lee, I.M., Pate, R.R., Powell, K.E., Blair, S.N.,
road cycling. The present results should also be used Franklin, B.A., Macera, C.A., Heath, G.W., Thompson, P. D.,
to update the cycling specific energy expenditure & Bauman, A. (2007). Physical activity and public health:
Updated recommendation for adults from the American
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estimations in the oft-cited compendium of physical College of Sports Medicine and the American Heart Associa-
activity (Ainsworth et al., 2011). tion. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 39, 1423–1434.
Helfant, R.H., De Villa, M.A., & Meister, S.G. (1971). Effect of
sustained isometric handgrip exercise on left ventricular
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This study was supported by funding from the downhill mountain biking in downhill and cross country cyclists.
Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Natural European College of Sports Sciences, Proceedings of the 7th Annual
Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada, and the Congress of the European College of Sports Sciences, Athens.
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Thank you to Brad Doran-Veevers for his help with activation during a simulated mountain bike drop-off. European
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