A Comparison of Aerobic Fitness Testing on a Swim Bench and Treadmill in a Recreational Surfing Cohort: A Pilot Study

The intermittent manner of surfing accentuates the importance of both the aerobic and anaerobic energy systems. Currently, the optimal method of assessing surfing-specific aerobic fitness is using a swim bench (SWB) ergometer; however, their limited availability presents a barrier to surfers wanting to know their maximal aerobic power (VO_2peak). As a result, the aims of this pilot study were to determine the VO_2peak of recreational surfers using a new commercial SWB ergometer and to propose and examine the feasibility of a regression model to predict SWB ergometer VO_2peak values. A total of nine recreational surfers were assessed where body measurements were conducted followed by maximal aerobic capacity testing (swim bench and treadmill) to profile the cohort. Findings demonstrated that VO_2peak values were significantly greater (p < 0.001) on the treadmill compared to the SWB ergometer (M = 66.01 ± 8.23 vs. 37.41 ± 8.73 mL/kg/min). Peak heart rate was also significantly greater on the treadmill compared to the SWB ergometer. Multiple regression analysis was used to produce a model which predicted SWB VO_2peak values with an R² value of 0.863 and an adjusted R² value of 0.726. The physiological profiling of the recreational cohort coupled with a surfer&rsquo;s predicted SWB VO_2peak value will allow for identification of surfing-specific aerobic fitness levels and evidence-based training recommendations.