A New Individual and Specific Test to Determine the Aerobic-Anaerobic Transition Zone (Santos Test) in Competitive Judokas

Santos, L, González, V, Iscar, M, Brime, JI, Fernandez-Rio, J, Egocheaga, J, Rodríguez, B, and Montoliu, MÁ. A new individual and specific test to determine the aerobic-anaerobic transition zone (Santos Test) in competitive judokas. J Strength Cond Res 24(9)2419-2428, 2010-The main goal of this research project was to design a specific, simple, and noninvasive field test to determine the individual aerobic-anaerobic transition zone in judokas. Our aim was to develop a field test as close as possible to real judo combat. Eight state- and national-level judokas participated in the study. To find the reliability of our test, all subjects repeated the same test under the same conditions within a 7-day period. Because the results were positive, we tested the validity of our proposal using a laboratory test that possessed the same characteristics. On both tests, the same parameters were studied. The mean data obtained in the laboratory test were as followsmaximum heart rate (HRmax)198.2 ± 3.9 b·min, HR at the anaerobic threshold170.3 ± 5.7 b·min, percentage of HRmax at which the anaerobic threshold appears85.9 ± 2.9%, lactate max14.6 ± 1.4 mmol·L, lactate threshold4 ± 0.3 mmol·L, and O2max58.3 ± 4.4 ml·kg·min. The mean data obtained in the field test were as followsHRmax199.7 ± 1.8 b·min, HR at the anaerobic threshold169.7 ± 2.7 b·min, percentage of HRmax at which the anaerobic threshold appears85.0 ± 1.8%, lactate max17.0 ± 2 mmol·L, lactate threshold4.0 ± 0.3 mmol·L, and O2max59.8 ± 3.6 ml·kg·min. There were no significant differences between the data obtained on both tests in any of the parameters evaluated, except for the lactate maximum. Therefore, we can conclude that our field test is a useful tool for judo training.