how-do-you-test-your-metabolism

How do you test your metabolism

Summer is coming and it's time to think about your body... The one who sits on a chair at the office for several hours every year, the one who tries to assimilate the quantities of fat and the one who remains active even when you take a nap.

Whether or not they have to, make resolutions about their state of health, such as the ambition to stop junk food, alcohol or cigarettes, to resume sport... This is already a first step towards the physical and physiological reconditioning of his body which inevitably ages.

Pushed by the advertisements extolling the merits of sport, the latest running shoes and health applications that remind you of "push notifications", we tell ourselves that it's time to get back into shape.

Before running to an equipment manufacturer to buy the latest anti-perspiration jogging suit, yoga mat or Rocky Balboa boxing gloves, it's best to know your physical limits.

Although Western medicine has accustomed us to cure rather than prevent (the opposite of Eastern medicine), the years go by and the physiological changes imposed by sporting efforts have a completely different impact on our bodies.

Let's see where your body is at this T moment of your life before you rush to the gym, see your sports coach or take a sports coaching class!

 

The dangers of sport without exercise testing

At the time of the mercato, soccer fans know it well... Before signing a player in his team, it is necessary to go through the unavoidable medical examination.

We remember, for example, that the world champion Lilian Thuram was unable to join Paris Saint Germain because of a heart murmur discovered following his medical examination.

It is therefore in a logic of precaution, in order to avoid accidents related to the most dangerous phase, which is that of resuming the practice of a sporting activity that we proceed with a stress test.

Why perform an exercise test?

It is obvious that when we talk about an effort test, we are talking about the one carried out in a laboratory, practiced to collect medical data on the patient, for people in their forties who wish to resume a physical activity.

Indeed, it is around this age that cell degeneration takes effect and that - although we think we still have the shape, the potato or the energy - our physical capacities, our heart and our vessels function differently.

According to some studies and the opinion of several renowned professors and doctors, men over 40 years of age are the people most at risk or exposed to a cardiac episode such as a heart attack during exercise.

This risk would increase all the more if these people present major vascular risk factors such as :

- Hypertension in people under stress.
- Repeated smoking among smokers.
- Hypercholesterolemia related to a high-fat diet.
- A cardiovascular legacy with a family history of heart disease.

It is therefore necessary, even indispensable, to supervise this return to sport in order to master its fitness, even if one does not have the ambition to become the Richard Virenque, the Ronaldo or the Teddy Rinner of cycling, soccer and judo respectively.

 

stress-test

 

Carry out a stress test

When is a stress test performed? We saw earlier the category of people who are supposed to perform a stress test; let's see when it can be prescribed by a doctor.

On medical indication, to prevent a sudden death like that of the late Michel Berger in tennis or Marc Vivien Foé in the middle of a match with Cameroon (Peace to his soul) several signals can alarm the doctor:

• When you feel palpitations, a strange shortness of breath with difficulty breathing, chest pain that persists, we will speak of: abnormal effort.
• When you have a cardiovascular risk inheritance, advanced age, high blood pressure or when you are a heavy smoker you will talk about risk factors.
• When you are a high-level athlete, in endurance sports such as marathon, half marathon, cycling, triathlon, swimming, team sports with a sports coach, martial arts and combat sports and you notice a drop in performance, we will talk about longitudinal monitoring.

Thus, depending on the objective and the patient's case, a different stress test will be carried out to evaluate the patient's cardio-vascular abilities.

 

What does the stress test consist of?

Just like the rapper 50 Cent in his clip In da club (Yes, I have a great general culture), the stress test consists, for the patient, in performing a series of physical exercises such as a bike session or a treadmill session that intensifies in stages.

Covered with electrodes on the torso, these allow the doctor to analyze the electrical activity of the heart and vascular system to evaluate the patient's capacity during physical exercise when the heart is in high activity.

The graphs that appear on the doctor's screen and that are recorded on his database allow him to identify signs of dysfunction, cardiac anomalies such as :

- Ischemia.
- Poor oxygenation of the heart.

 

The stress test in sportsmen and women

Unlike other individuals, athletes will use field tests. Indeed, through various indirect evaluations, we will be able to understand the physiology of the individual to improve his athletic qualities by using personalized training.

Laboratory tests are only required by :

• The sports coach, the club president or the sponsor to check the state of health of his athlete.
• The health authorities, the League, institutions or sports organizations, for legal reasons.

 

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The Ruffier Dickson test

To assess one's aptitude for effort, one can use the most popular test: the Ruffier Dickson test.

Based on heart rate variations following physical effort related to weight training, this test allows you to evaluate an individual's fitness level.

Also called IRD, this test is presented in 3 steps:

Step 1: Lie down for 5 minutes, calmly, then take your pulse.

Step 2: Perform 30 "squats" or full squats on the legs, arms outstretched and feet flat on the floor within 45 seconds and keeping a steady rhythm. Note that it is advisable to avoid performing climbs and descents that are too slow or too fast so as not to alter the final value of the test. Take your pulse once again after performing these bends.

Step 3: Lie down again, wait a minute, take your pulse a third time.

 

The Dickson Index

Dickson Index Results Table :

Index < 0 = excellent. 0 to 2 = very good. 2 to 4 = good. 4 to 6 = medium. 6 to 8 = low. 8 to 10 = very low. 10 < index = poor adaptation.

Considered more reliable than the Ruffier index, the Dickson index indicates two things:

• The resting heart rate slows down over the months and years in athletes who continue to train regularly: this is a guarantee of quality.
• Naturally, the ability to exercise will be facilitated in individuals with a low heart rate.

Also, unlike Ruffier's index, this one takes into account the fact that emotional individuals, stressed at the idea of carrying out this test, may have a resting heart rate.

 

The Ruffier Index

Index < 0 = very good adaptation to the effort.
0 < index < 5 = good adaptation to the effort.
5 < index < 10 = average adaptation to effort.
10 < index < 15 = insufficient adaptation to effort.
15 < index = poor adaptation to effort.

Note that the simplest way to perform these tests is to wear a heart rate monitor (thanks to technology!) that will be able to instantly measure the frequency without the error deviations that can occur when taking the pulse manually.

Finally, you should know that it is impossible to have the same reasoning and the same exercise aptitude tests for a child or teenager. Because their resting heart rate is higher than that of an adult, they must follow a test adapted to their status.

 

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