The Potential to Change Pacing and Performance During 4000-m Cycling Time Trials Using Hyperoxia and Inspired Gas-Content Deception

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Michael J. Davies
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Bradley Clark
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Laura A. Garvican-Lewis
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Marijke Welvaert
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Christopher J. Gore
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Kevin G. Thompson
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DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1123/ijspp.2018-0335
In Print:
Volume 14: Issue 7
Page Range:
949–957
Restricted access

Purpose: To determine if a series of trials with fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2) content deception could improve 4000-m cycling time-trial (TT) performance. Methods: A total of 15 trained male cyclists (mean [SD] body mass 74.2 [8.0] kg, peak oxygen uptake 62 [6] mL·kg−1·min−1) completed six 4000-m cycling TTs in a semirandomized order. After a familiarization TT, cyclists were informed in 2 initial trials they were inspiring normoxic air (NORM, FiO2 0.21); however, in 1 trial (deception condition), they inspired hyperoxic air (NORM-DEC, FiO2 0.36). During 2 subsequent TTs, cyclists were informed they were inspiring hyperoxic air (HYPER, FiO2 0.36), but in 1 trial, normoxic air was inspired (HYPER-DEC). In the final TT (NORM-INFORM), the deception was revealed and cyclists were asked to reproduce their best TT performance while inspiring normoxic air. Results: Greater power output and faster performances occurred when cyclists inspired hyperoxic air in both truthful (HYPER) and deceptive (NORM-DEC) trials than NORM (P < .001). However, performance only improved in NORM-INFORM (377 W; 95% confidence interval [CI] 325–429) vs NORM (352 W; 95% CI 299–404; P < .001) when participants (n = 4) completed the trials in the following order: NORM-DEC, NORM, HYPER-DEC, HYPER. Conclusions: Cycling performance improved with acute exposure to hyperoxia. Mechanisms for the improvement were likely physiological; however, improvement in a deception trial suggests an additional placebo effect. Finally, a particular sequence of oxygen deception trials may have built psychophysiological belief in cyclists such that performance improved in a subsequent normoxic trial.

Davies, Clark, Garvican-Lewis, Welvaert, and Thompson are with the Research Inst for Sport and Exercise, University of Canberra, Bruce, ACT, Australia. Davies, Garvican-Lewis, Welvaert, and Gore are with the Dept of Physiology, Australian Inst of Sport, Bruce, ACT, Australia. Garvican-Lewis is also with the Mary MacKillop Inst for Health Research, Australian Catholic University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia. Thompson is also with the New South Wales Inst of Sport, Sydney Olympic Park, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

Clark (brad.clark@canberra.edu.au) is corresponding author.
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