3.3.3. Hypothesis 3
Hypothesis 3 proposed that perceived exertion during each quarter of the trial, as well as average perceived exertion, would be significantly lower in the intervention group compared to placebo if the baseline dietary nitrate intake was low (<300 mg nitrates) in the placebo group. Hypothesis 3 was rejected using a paired-samples t-test. There was no statistically significant difference in average perceived exertion in the Cooper test between the placebo and intervention groups in the first quarter (t = −0.39477, df = 12, 