Skip to main content
ARS Home » Plains Area » Grand Forks, North Dakota » Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center » Dietary Prevention of Obesity-related Disease Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #111021
Title: ADJUSTMENT TO A PEAK PHYSICAL WORK CAPACITY TREADMILL TEST

Author
item Siders, William
item Lukaski, Henry
item Hall, Clinton

Submitted to: North Dakota Academy of Science Proceedings
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/10/2000
Publication Date: 4/28/2000
Citation: Siders, W.A., Lukaski, H.C., Hall, C.B. 2000. Adjustment to a peak physical work capacity treadmill test. Proceedings of the North Dakota Academy of Science. 54:41.

Interpretive Summary: There is limited information about how many exercise tests need be performed to provide similar results that can be used to prescribe exercise or to determine effects of diet changes. We examined this question by measuring physiological responses during treadmill exercise in women who performed either two or three exercise tests. The women who performed two exercise tests exercised longer which elicited significant increases in physiological response measures of ventilation rate, heart rate, oxygen consumption, and carbon dioxide production. Physiological responses also tended to improve from the first to the third test but only significantly for carbon dioxide production. These findings suggest that for prescribing exercise, one treadmill test may be enough. But for comparing to values obtained after diet changes, two or three tests may be necessary. This study provides information for planning the testing of persons entering exercise programs or nutritional studies. This information will be useful to public health professionals who study the interaction between diet and physiological function as well as health care professionals who prescribe exercise for their clients or patients.

Technical Abstract: Prior to their participation in controlled metabolic studies, thirty-two women, aged 21-39 years, participated in a study to determine the reproducibility of physiological responses during graded progressive treadmill tests with the objective of ascertaining whether two or three tests were needed to obtain reliable results. The women who performed two exercise tests exercised longer which elicited significant increases in power output, ventilation rate, heart rate, oxygen consumption, and carbon dioxide production. Physiological responses also tended to improve from the first to the third test but only significantly for carbon dioxide production. These findings indicate a habituation in performance and cardiovascular fitness measures associated with increased test duration over repeated treadmill tests. The findings suggest that for prescribing exercise, one treadmill test may be sufficient, but for comparing to values obtained after diet changes, two or three tests may be necessary.