Maximal steady state blood lactate levels in 11-year-old boys

To evaluate whether anaerobic threshold criteria evaluated in adults are pertinent to children, ten boys with a mean age of 11.2 years were investigated during treadmill running. Maximal running velocity was determined at stepwise increasing load, with determination of blood lactate following exercise. On the following days four runs each lasting 16 min were performed at a constant speed starting with a speed corresponding to about 70% of the maximal speed and increasing it during the next run in order to determine maximal steady state levels of blood lactate. Blood lactate was measured at the end of every 4 min period. From this date the anaerobic threshold was calculated. The correlation between anaerobic threshold values and maximal steady state levels of blood lactate was poor, however, a steady state of blood lactate was present at 4.6 mmol/l, whereas the mean anaerobic threshold value was determined at 2.6 mmol/l. In view of our results, the anaerobic threshold during increasing work does not correspond to the true anaerobic threshold, which can be assumed to occur at much higher lactate values. The meaning of the term anaerobic threshold is therefore to be questioned.