What limits performance during whole‐body incremental exercise to exhaustion in humans?

Key points At the end of an incremental exercise to exhaustion a large functional reserve remains in the muscles to generate power, even at levels far above the power output at which task failure occurs, regardless of the inspiratory O 2 pressure during the incremental exercise. Exhaustion (task failure) is not due to lactate accumulation and the associated muscle acidification; neither the aerobic energy pathways nor the glycolysis are blocked at exhaustion. Muscle lactate accumulation may actually facilitate early recovery after exhaustive exercise even under ischaemic conditions. Although the maximal rate of ATP provision is markedly reduced at task failure, the resynthesis capacity remaining exceeds the rate of ATP consumption, indicating that task failure during an incremental exercise to exhaustion depends more on central than peripheral mechanisms.Abstract To determine the mechanisms causing task failure during incremental exercise to exhaustion (IE), sprint performance (10 s all‐out isokinetic) and muscle metabolites were measured before (control) and immediately after IE in normoxia ( P I O 2: 143 mmHg) and hypoxia ( P I O 2: 73 mmHg) in 22 men (22 ± 3 years). After IE, subjects recovered for either 10 or 60 s, with open circulation or bilateral leg occlusion (300 mmHg) in random order. This was followed by a 10 s sprint with open circulation. Post‐IE peak power output ( W peak ) was higher than the power output reached at exhaustion during IE ( P  < 0.05). After 10 and 60 s recovery in normoxia, W peak was reduced by 38 ± 9 and 22 ± 10% without occlusion, and 61 ± 8 and 47 ± 10% with occlusion ( P  < 0.05). Following 10 s occlusion, W peak was 20% higher in hypoxia than normoxia ( P  < 0.05), despite similar muscle lactate accumulation ([La]) and phosphocreatine and ATP reduction. Sprint performance and anaerobic ATP resynthesis were greater after 60 s compared with 10 s occlusions, despite the higher [La] and [H + ] after 60 s compared with 10 s occlusion recovery ( P  < 0.05). The mean rate of ATP turnover during the 60 s occlusion was 0.180 ± 0.133 mmol (kg wet wt) −1 s −1 , i.e. equivalent to 32% of leg peak O 2 uptake (the energy expended by the ion pumps). A greater degree of recovery is achieved, however, without occlusion. In conclusion, during incremental exercise task failure is not due to metabolite accumulation or lack of energy resources. Anaerobic metabolism, despite the accumulation of lactate and H + , facilitates early recovery even in anoxia. This points to central mechanisms as the principal determinants of task failure both in normoxia and hypoxia, with lower peripheral contribution in hypoxia.