Deck 20: Laboratory Assessment of Human Performance

Question 1

Discuss the rationale behind laboratory tests designed to assess physical performance in athletes. How do these tests differ from general physical fitness tests

Answer 1

The assessment of physical performance includes the following approaches:
• Field tests of physical fitness and performance
• Laboratory assessments of physiological capacities
Field tests provide information about the physical fitness of a person. They provide information about general condition of the person. They do not provide detailed information about the physiological information that is required to estimate an athlete's performance in a specific athletic event.
Physical fitness test provide information on the individual's capacity for maximal energy output, muscular strength, economy of movement, muscle coordination, psychological factors, and environment. Laboratory evaluation is based on understanding those factors that are crucial for optimal performance in a particular athletic event. For example, sprint event requires good technique along with high anaerobic output, whereas gold requires proper coordination; swimming requires aerobic production of energy. Thus laboratory tests are designed keeping in view the requirement of these individual events.
• Laboratory test assess various physiological components required for performance, separately, and provide the athlete with those components that require improvement
• The tests provide the athlete about the effectiveness of a training program through periodic assessment
• The tests educate the athlete about physiology of exercise. They provide the athlete with information on physiological parameters that are important to success in a specific athletic event the athlete is interested in

Question 2

Define maximal oxygen uptake. Why might relative
max be the single most important factor in predicting distance running success in a heterogeneous group of runners

Answer 2

British scientist A.V. Hill used VO₂ max as a parameter for exercise testing. According to him VO₂ max (maximal oxygen uptake) is " the highest oxygen uptake that an individual can obtain during exercise using large muscle groups."
The measurement of VO₂ max has been considered the test of choice to predict success in endurance vents such as distance running. Relative VO₂ max which is expressed in
has been considered the single most important factor to predict distance running success in heterogeneous group of athletes.
Distance running is an aerobic event. Individuals with high VO₂ max have an advantage over individuals with lower aerobic capacities, in distance running events. However, the correlation between VO₂ max and distance running performance is low in homogeneous group of athletes. This indicates that apart from VO₂ max, there are other contributing factors that determine distance running success. Therefore, measurement of VO₂ max is only one of the tests that determine performance of endurance athletes.

Question 3

Discuss the concept of "specifi city of testing" for the determination of
max. Give a brief overview of the design of an incremental test to determine
max. What criteria can be used to determine the validity of a
max test

Answer 3

Specificity of testing means that the determination of VO₂ max should involve specific movement used by an athlete in his/her event. For example, if an athlete is a distance runner, VO₂ max should be assessed during running; and for a trained cyclist, the test should be performed on a cycle ergometer.
The design of an incremental test to measure VO₂ max includes the following:
• The test begins with a submaximal warm-up load that may last three to five minutes
• The work load is then increased step wise each minute until the subject reaches a point at which power output cannot be maintained
• The increment is done to a load that is near to the predicted maximal load for the subject in the preliminary experiments
• the point where the power output cannot be maintained is determined as VO₂ max of the subject
The criteria that is used to determine the validity of VO₂ max test is listed below:
• When the oxygen uptake reaches a plateau even with increase in work rate
• Blood lactate concentration of more than 8 mmoles/ liter during the last stage of exercise
• A respiratory exchange ratio of
1.15
• A heart rate during the last stage of exercise that is
10 beats per minute

Question 4

Briefly, explain the technique employed to determine the lactate threshold and the ventilatory threshold.

Question 5

Describe how the economy of running might be evaluated in the laboratory.

Question 6

Discuss the theory and procedures involved in predicting success in distance running.

Question 7

Explain how short-term maximal anaerobic power can be evaluated by field tests.

Question 8

Describe how the Wingate test is used to assess medium-term anaerobic power.

Question 9

Provide an overview of the 1-RM technique to evaluate muscular strength. Why might a computer-assisted dynamometer be superior to the 1-RM technique in assessing strength changes

Question 10

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each of the following types of strength measurement: (1) dynamic, (2) free weights, (3) isokinetic, and (4) variable resistance