Why is Testing Important?
Testing is important for a number of reasons;
To measure your current status (fitness, wellness, hydration, cellular health).
Identify strengths, weaknesses and any anomalies.
Provide a starting point for a fitness/wellness program.
Monitor your progress.
Compare your values with peers/team-mates.
Metabolism Test
What is Metabolism?
Metabolism is a critical component of your health and wellness.
Your metabolism controls your body temperature, appetite, energy levels, digestion rate, stress and body weight.
While most people have an awareness of metabolism, very few have had their metabolism assessed.
A poor or unhealthy metabolism will cause the following symptoms;
· Difficulty losing weight (slow metabolism)
· Difficulty gaining weight (fast metabolism)
· Sugar cravings
· Tiredness and a lack of energy
· Drowsiness after eating
· Cold hands and feet
· Stomach bloating
· Poor concentration
· Tired even after many hours of sleep
· Difficulty breathing with exercise
Poor cellular health
Why is it important?
Metabolism is a barometer of your general health as shown by the symptoms above.
If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, it is recommended to perform a metabolism test to ensure all is functioning normally.
What information can be gained from a metabolism test?
A metabolism test provides important health information that cannot be gained from any other test.
a. Calories expended per day – weight control is centred around calorie expenditure and calorie intake and the metabolism test is the ONLY assessment to accurately determine your daily calorie expenditure.
b. Type of calories expended per day – the body will generally burn a ratio of carbohydrates and fats as determined by your choice of foods. The metabolism test will assess your current ratio of carbohydrate vs fat burning.
c. Hormonal balance – metabolism is controlled by various hormones and a poor metabolism score may suggest a hormonal imbalance particularly in women.
d. Energy levels – low energy, fatigue, tiredness and lethargy are common symptoms of an inefficient metabolism. This test will identify the factors causing poor energy levels.
e. Is your metabolism at fault? – people often use metabolism as an excuse for their poor weight control. This test will accurately determine if your metabolism is causing a health problem.
f. How fit and healthy are your cells?
What can be done for an abnormal test result?
Following a test, your Consultant will review the results and determine the factors that may be causing an abnormal result e.g. diet, stress, hormonal imbalance, lack of essential nutrients, cell fitness.
Dietary changes, modifications and perhaps cell training may be suggested with an individual plan and then progress will be monitored with a follow-up metabolism test in the future.
How soon will I feel better?
If the solution is simple, like modifying certain aspects of your diet, then changes will be felt with days. If the problem is more complex, more than one solution may be required.
Most importantly, with regular re-testing, any small progress can be measured to ensure a positive long-term outcome and to reinforce the value of the service.
Cellular Fitness
What does it mean?
Your health is dependant on the immediate health of your body’s cells. The body is made of trillions of cells and their ability to perform different functions in the body largely determine your level of health. The most important function of each cell is to generate energy that sustains it’s health and allows the cell to perform its different function within the body. If the body’s cells are unable to generate adequate energy, the individual cell’s abilities will suffer and eventually the cell may expire.
Measuring your cells ability to generate energy is a reflection of your body’s state of health.
For example, if your cells are having difficulty generating energy, then this will be reflected as general tiredness, lethargy, exhaustion and fatigue.
Why is it important?
While there are many different pathology tests available, very few are able to assess your cellular fitness. Monitoring the level of energy generated by cells provides a very strong indicator for good health and wellness.
What can be done for an abnormal result?
Cell-Gym is a new form of training that provides people with poor energy levels/symptoms an effective means of correcting their low energy levels in a relatively short time. The training consists of a 30 minute Cell-Gym training session performed two times per week from the comfort of arm chair.
How soon will I feel better?
Some clients feel immediate benefit after a 30 minute training while others may take 2 - 3 training sessions. The training effect can be different for every person because the state of each persons’s cellular health is different depending on age, physical fitness, stress, injury and general health.
Regular re-testing will provide feedback on the amount of improvement gained and the ideal number of training sessions required per person.
Fat Burning Test
What does it mean?
Many people exercise with the specific aim to lose or to control their body weight. A high percentage of these people however, become frustrated at their lack of success particularly with the amount of time and effort invested in the exercise. Of greater concern is commencing an exercise program and actually gaining weight!!
It is highly likely that you are having no success simply because the exercise regime does not stimulate fat burning.
Simply put, to lose body fat you must ensure the body burns primarily fat during and after your exercise.
The Fat Burning Test is a simple exercise test performed on a treadmill or cycle ergometer to assess;
(i) Are you burning fat during exercise?
(ii) At what exercise intensity or heart rate do you burn fat?
(iii) What is the ideal exercise for you to burn fat?
(iv) Is your diet affecting your fat burning?
(v) Are there other factors not relating to exercise and diet that are preventing you from burning fat?
Why is the test important?
This test provides answers to your pent-up frustration!!
Finding out the correct exercise and intensity to burn fat is critical to weight control.
This test may also identify other factors preventing weight loss such as a slow metabolism, poor food choices, hormonal condition or too much stress.
What can be done for an abnormal test result?
Following a test, your Consultant will review the results and determine the factors that may be preventing fat burning. An individual plan can then be designed to ensure your exercise and diet are conducive to fat burning and weight loss or trimming up.
Max VO2 Test
What does it mean?
The Gold Standard of aerobic fitness testing to determine aerobic capacity and potential. The testing can be performed on a treadmill, cycle or rowing ergometer depending on the athlete’s sport.
The testing protocol involves an incremental increase in workload every 2 minutes until the athletes reaches a voluntary state of exhaustion.
During the testing phase, the athlete’s heart rate, volume of oxygen, rate of breathing and breath volume are measured with each breath or an average every 10 seconds.
At the completion of the test, the athlete’s aerobic capacity is measured in litres of oxygen per minute.
Why is the test important?
All elite endurance athletes are rated according to their Max VO2 score and the test is a very good predictor of athletic potential. Further, the test provides important information relating to training e.g. the intensity at which to train ignorer to achieve aerobic improvement or the exercise intensity to achieve in order to perform at your maximum.
How soon do I improve?
Generally, four weeks of aerobic training at the correct intensity will show significant results.
Hydration Test
What Does it Mean?
Using a refractometer to measure the density of urine (specifically the first morning void) compared to water determines concentration. A USG of 1.020 is generally considered indicative of proper hydration.
The athlete provides a urine sample that is assessed using a Refractometer and their score is compared with 1.02 to assess the athlete’s current level of hydration.
Why is the test important?
If the athlete is found to be de-hydrated, then their physical performance and recovery will be significantly affected.
How soon do I improve?
Following the test, you will be provided with an amount of fluid to consume (if deemed to be de-hydrated) and within 30- 60 minutes should return to normal levels depending on the initial state of de-hydrated.
Muscle Status
What does it mean?
It is possible to measure a muscle’s strength, power and speed using specially designed Isokinetic equipment. It is important that muscles on each side of the body e.g. left and right quadriceps are equal in strength, power and speed. Further, it is very important for athletes to ensure opposing muscle groups e.g. quadriceps and hamstrings, biceps and triceps are similar in strength, power and speed.
Why is the test important?
Identifying weaknesses between muscle groups e.g. right and left quadriceps can pre-warn of impending injury. Further, finding significant imbalances between opposing muscle groups can also pre-warn athletes of future problems. Regular testing can highlight strength or power improvements due to training or following a rehabilitation program.
Many Practitioners can use this information as a Return-to-Practice or Return-to-Play guide for their clients/athletes following a significant injury.