Influence of Torque and Cadence on Power Output Production in Cyclists

Abstract

Purpose: No information is available on the torque/cadence relationship in road cyclists. We aimed to establish whether this relationship differs between cyclists of different performance levels or team roles. Methods: Mean maximal power (MMP) output data from 177 riders were obtained from 2012 to 2021 from training and competitions. Cyclists were categorized according to their performance level (world-tour [WT, n = 68], procontinental [PC, n = 63], or under 23 [U23, n = 46]) and team role (time trialists [n = 12], all-rounders [n = 94], climbers [n = 64], or team leaders [n = 7]). Results: A significant interaction effect was found for absolute and relative MMP (P < .001), with higher values in PC than WT for short (5–60 s) efforts and the opposite trend for longer durations. MMP was also greater in PC than in U23 for short efforts (30–60 s), with WT and PC attaining higher MMP than U23 for longer bouts (5–60 min). A significant interaction effect was found for cadence (P = .007, but with no post hoc differences) and absolute (P = .010) and relative torque (P = .002), with PC and WT showing significantly higher torque (all P < .05) than U23 for 5- to 60-minute efforts, yet with no differences between the former 2 performance levels. No interaction effect between team roles was found for cadence (P = .185) or relative torque (P = .559), but a significant interaction effect was found for absolute torque (P < .001), with all-rounders attaining significantly higher values than climbers for 5-second to 5-minute efforts. Conclusions: Differences in MMP between cycling performance levels and rider types are dependent on torque rather than cadence, which might support the role of torque development in performance.