Preferred pedal rate: an index of cycling performance

The purpose of this study was to determine whether preferred pedal rate (PPR) could be used as an index of cycling performance. Thirteen competitive cyclists cycled at PPR during a graded test and a supra-threshold constant power test (CPT). The results showed that PPR values reported in CPT were correlated to both peak power determined from the graded test and exhaustion time assessed in CPT. Furthermore, multiple regression revealed that PPR values and P (peak) were two predictors of exhaustion time in CPT. Hence, this study suggests that coaches and sports scientists have to take into account PPR values complementary to P (peak) in order to evaluate the capacity of cycling performance.