The SIGMA Difference - Advanced Metabolic Profiling How do you measure the effectiveness of a metabolic test? Through the length of time the tester has been an athlete? By the amount of scientific jargon they use that you don’t understand? It is always true that you don’t know what you don’t know, so we have asked our own exercise physiologist, Ben Stone, to clarify the difference between average, run-of-the-mill VO2 Max tests and Sigma’s clinical grade Metabolic Profiling. The Sigma Difference While VO2max is definitely a strong indicator of overall aerobic fitness, and we have known this for quite some time, it, like all other performance metrics, has limitations. It is critical that athletes pay specific attention to the key metabolic markers that are directly linked to an athlete’s fuel economy rather than VO2max alone. Determining proper training intensities using anaerobic threshold, metabolic equivalent point, and maximal fat oxidation rates allows for a much more advantageous strategy in improving overall aerobic response. These true indicators of fitness, when used in concert, solidify the foundation of what makes you a successful endurance athlete. Because Sigma employs only clinical grade metabolic testing equipment, the resulting information paints a COMPLETE canvas that encompasses all key metabolic markers including (but not exclusively) VO2max. This means that through Sigma’s Advanced Metabolic Profiling, the athlete has the ability to: Pinpoint maximal metabolic efficiency for athletes seeking an improvement in either performance or overall health status. Determine to the calorie, the usage of fats and carbohydrates being implemented during rest and exercise. Monitor respiratory efficiency allowing Sigma to assess anaerobic threshold without more old-fashioned and invasive techniques (blood collection). Assess the status of low-end aerobic fitness that VO2max alone would not indicate Set specific training zones according to the each client’s individual metabolism, rather than standardized values preset by calculated VO2max values. Garner important metabolic information pertinent to lifestyle changes or weight loss (diet, exercise intensity, etc). Gain valuable insight and information regarding calorie consumption while in competition as the limit the usage of muscle glycogen stores and increase efficiency as much as possible. Understand which facets of your aerobic and anaerobic profiles require the greatest amount of time input to increase your training efficiency. The uses of Advanced Metabolic Profiling reach far beyond exposition of just VO2max alone. These pieces of information provide the framework for isolating and improving upon any metabolic limitation whether at low or high intensity. They are also vital components to any successful training regime regardless of whether an athlete’s goals are competitive in nature or are geared toward realizing a greater measure of health.
Posted on: Wed, 05 Jun 2013 20:49:32 +0000