The Wingate Test Lab Report

Background

The purpose of the Wingate Test is to measure anaerobic power and capacity in the lower extremities of the body. The test is performed on a cycle ergometer and requires the subject(s) to cycle at maximum for 30-seconds. The factors of anaerobic power and anaerobic capacity are vital in sports which demand short-duration maximal efforts. Peak power is a measure of muscular strength and speed and is the maximal power output achieved for 5 seconds of the Wingate test, decided by the highest number of revolutions. The anaerobic capacity, or average power, is determined by the quotient of the total number of revolutions averaged over the 30 seconds. The difference in power output, a measure of anaerobic capacity, is recorded as the Fatigue Index (FI). It was hypothesized first that the more active subject, subject 2, would have a higher total number of revolutions, and thus would establish a higher mean anaerobic power (W). Additionally, the subject with the higher peak anaerobic power (W) would have a lower Fatigue Index (FI), as FI is inversely related to peak power.

Discussion

Wingate tests are used in the measurement of peak anaerobic power and anaerobic capacity in short, high-intensity exercise. Thus, anaerobic component of exercise in this test can be attributed to the ATP-PC, anaerobic metabolism. ATP-PC stores is the primary source in early exercise, and generally show an almost immediate increase to peak ATP, and therefore its contribution can be seen in the first 5s of the test. Both absolute and relative measurements of peak and mean power were recorded in this lab. Relative measures of peak and mean power are calculated dependent on body weight (kg), whereas absolute measures of peak and mean power do not include individual differences. Relative measures allow for comparison between subjects in regard to individual differences, such as body weight. Peak power measurements are calculated based on the highest performance in a 5 second interval, and mean power measurements are determined via the total number of revolutions, or performance outcome, after the 30 seconds is complete.

Subject 1 had both higher absolute and relative peak and mean powers in comparison to Subject 2. Based on relative peak and mean, Subject 1 classified as “Above Average” for both, however, Subject 2 marked “Average” for relative peak power and “Below Average” for relative mean power. Based on the subjects’ demographics, it can be concluded that the subject with the higher physical activity (FITT) status had better performance outcomes on the Wingate test, which coincides with the hypothesis previously stated. In this lab, Subject 1’s FITT status was higher than Subject 2, and indeed performed significantly better. Many factors, however, can play a role in performance outcome, such as age, height, and weight. Subject 1 is three years older than Subject 2, is slightly taller, and about 8kg heavier. One can suggest that due to experience and overall greater body size, Subject 1 would perform better than Subject 2, exerting more power. Physical differences, though, are not the only factors that these results can be attested to. Fatigue index (FI) was additionally recorded. Physiological differences dominate the differences in high and low fatigue indices in this experiment. For example, the absolute peak anaerobic power can be attributed to a force-velocity relationship. To use this value as an estimation of the muscular properties of a muscle group, the following conditions must be true: (a) motor unit recruitment must be the same for all forces and all velocities; (b) forces and velocities must be calculated at the same time during the movement; (c) the work against gravitational forces must not be neglected. These conditions hold true for this Wingate test, as the force remained constant per subject, velocity was measured through the amount of revolutions per 5 second interval, and gravity was applied in the equations to calculate both peak and mean powers. In previous studies, it’s be shown that subjects with more than 50% fast twitch muscle fibers reach their maximal power at 119rev/min and subjects with less than 50% fast twitch muscle fibers at 104 rev/min. Based on this finding, one could assume that Subject 1 has more fast twitch fibers, as the total number of revolutions after 30 seconds was higher than Subject 2.

A limitation of the cycle ergometer test and the calculations of peak and mean power is that the inertia of the devices is not accounted for. If it were considered, the mean power measured would correspond to the peak power developed by subjects. Another limitation with this study is the time of the lab section in which the test was conducted. Both subjects performed the Wingate test around 8am with minimal warm-up time. If the subjects’ bodies were not physically prepared early that morning for the intensity of the test, then it is possible that the results do not reflect the person’s full performance potential. Also, in the lab setting, there was a lack of extrinsic motivation (i.e., competition, cheering, encouragement) which can often enhance performance.

References

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