ABSTRACT
Over the last quarter century, many advancements have taken place in the development of metabolic testing systems and procedures. Today’s metabolic testing systems are highly automated and instantly provide real-time table and graphical data. Correspondingly, these systems can be programmed to control various ergometers while integrating the devices’ respective data into metabolic testing reports (i.e. treadmill speed/grade or cycling watts). Testers can select from a large array of basic or more advanced variable options such as whole-body substrate oxidation rates, ventilatory threshold (VT), respiratory compensation point (RCP), O2 and CO2 ventilatory equivalents or oxygen uptake efficiency slopes that help identify key adaptations to training (Balady et al., 2010; Lourenco et al., 2011; Wasserman, 2012). Additionally, most research and clinically based metabolic systems allow the user to develop unique formula-based variables to meet a specific need such as watts per kg of body weight, which is a key indicator of a cyclist’s climbing ability.
