Exercise Physiology Mini Assignment
Name: Your Name Here Professor: Dr. Evil, Spock, Seuss
Exercise Physiology is an area of Sport and Exercise Science that has numerous
prac cal applica ons. This assignment is designed to help you iden fy some of
the major components of exercise physiology and its applica on to real world
situa ons.
1. Iden fy the major foci of exercise physiology, what are they interested in
looking at?
Exercise physiology is focused on studying the e ects of exercise on the body. It
looks at the body’s response and adapta ons to physical s muli.
2. Why is exercise physiology an area of importance for prac oners? Provide a
clear example of where exercise physiology knowledge could be used by a
prac oner to improve either their prac ce, or performance of a client.
Exercise physiology is an area of importance for prac oners because it provides
a basis for understanding how the body reacts to exercise and physical ac vity.
An understanding of this allow prac oners like coaches, personal trainers, PTs,
and more to create a personalized exercise program that is healthy and e cient
for their pa ents or athletes physiology. For example, a long-distance coach
needs the appropriate knowledge of exercise physiology to understand the
e ects lactate threshold training has on their athletes body and su ciently
implement lactate training with the correct intensity and recovery.
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3. What is the di erence between a gold standard and prac cal exercise test?
Iden fy both a gold standard and prac cal test to measure cardiorespiratory
endurance and explain what they measure and how they are related.
A gold standard test is considered the most accurate and reliable method for
measuring a physiological variable. While not quite as accurate, prac cal exercise
test are convenient as they can be conducted while the athlete is exercising/
playing their sport.
Gold Standard Ex: VO2 Max test measures the maximum amount of oxygen the
body can use during intense exercise. It is accurately conducted using a treadmill
or sta onary bike where the intensity is gradually increased. The athlete wears a
mask that measures the volume of oxygen they consumed and the amount of CO2
they expelled during exercise.
Prac cal Test: PACER test is similar to a VO2 max test in that it measures a person’s
cardiorespiratory endurance through increasing intensity. But the PACER test is a
more inaccurate test as data is collected through observa on rather than
individualized, scien c measurements and data. While it is a more inaccurate
test, it allows a prac oner to get a basic measurement of cardiorespiratory
endurance for a large group in a non-clinical se ng.
4. Explain how exercise physiology tes ng could be used to bene t the
performance or health of a speci c popula on. Be sure to provide su cient
discussion and detail.
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Exercise physiology tes ng can bene t the performance and health of
compe ve college cross country teams because it allows the coach an accurate
and scien c measurement of their athletes physiological weaknesses and
strengths. For example, a coach can more accurately implement Zone training
a er their athletes have had VO2 Max Tests that provide the necessary data to
perform within the desired zone of BPM. Without exercise physiology tests like
the VO2 Max test, the coach must rely solely on what they can observe. This
increases the risks of injury and burn out as their is no scien c date measuring
the strain of training on the athlete’s body.
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