i know this is originally Tony's thread.
I thought this might be a relevant little gem for more possible discussion.
it is not exactly ibuprofen but painkiller all the same & the effect on cycling.
std. deviation is pretty small though sample size is too (n=13).
OBLA was higher during ACE ingestion but this is expected given power was likely higher also though RPE was not.
maybe other factors contributed to the decrease in TT time when taking ACE (environmental conditions like wind? temp?):
Influence of acetaminophen on performance during time trial cycling
Alexis R. Mauger, Andrew M. Jones, and Craig A. Williams School of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Exeter, Devon, United Kingdom
Submitted 15 July 2009 ; accepted in final form 5 November 2009
To establish whether acetaminophen improves performance of self-paced exercise through the reduction of perceived pain, 13 trained male cyclists performed a self-paced 10-mile (16.1 km) cycle time trial (TT) following the ingestion of either acetaminophen (ACT) or a placebo (PLA), administered in randomized double-blind design. TT were completed in a significantly faster time (
t12 = 2.55,
P < 0.05) under the ACT condition (26 min 15 s ± 1 min 36 s vs. 26 min 45 s ± 2 min 2 s). Power output (PO) was higher during the middle section of the TT in the ACT condition, resulting in a higher mean PO (
P < 0.05) (265 ± 12 vs. 255 ± 15 W). Blood lactate concentration (B[La]) and heart rate (HR) were higher in the ACT condition (B[La] = 6.1 ± 2.9 mmol/l; HR = 87 ± 7%max) than in the PLA condition (B[La] = 5.1 ± 2.6 mmol/l; HR = 84 ± 9%max) (
P < 0.05). No significant difference in rating of perceived exertion (ACT = 15.5 ± 0.2; PLA = 15.7 ± 0.2) or perceived pain (ACT = 5.6 ± 0.2; PLA = 5.5 ± 0.2) (
P > 0.05) was observed. Using acetaminophen, participants cycled at a higher mean PO, with an increased HR and B[La], but without changes in perceived pain or exertion. Consequently, completion time was significantly faster. These findings support the notion that exercise is regulated by pain perception, and increased pain tolerance can improve exercise capacity.
central regulation; power output; perceived exertion; afferent feedback