The higher oxygen consumption during multiple short intervals is sex-independent and not influenced by skeletal muscle characteristics in well-trained cyclists.

It has been suggested that time spent at a high fraction of maximal oxygen consumption (% O) plays a decisive role for adaptations to interval training. However, previous studies examining how interval sessions should be designed to achieve a high % O have exclusively been performed in males. The present study compared the % O attained during three different 6 × 8 min interval protocols, in female (n = 11; O, 62.