Metabolic tests for wrestlers at Purdue Department of Health and Kinesiology (USA) with Quark CPET
Students from the Purdue Department of Health and Kinesiology (HK) conducted metabolic testing for Purdue wrestlers in collaboration with the team’s strength and conditioning coach to enhance their performance.
Professors Jason Chrapek, Cassandra L., grad student Ivan Andres Alonso Bobadilla and several undergraduate students and interns conducted VO2max testing on 11 current Purdue wrestlers. VO2max testing will give the Strength and Conditioning coach Jason Pullara valuable insights into how an athlete can be expected to perform at any given intensity.
Using data such as VO2max, aerobic threshold, anaerobic threshold and a 12-lead ECG, he can then individualize training leading up to the upcoming season to help maximize overall physiological readiness for the demands of the sport. This data also provides insights into what specific adaptations we would like to work towards while taking into account all aspects of sports performance specific to the sport of wrestling.
The wrestlers were fitted with a mask connected to COSMED Quark CPET metabolic cart, which measured the athletes’ expired air by looking at the concentration of oxygen and carbon dioxide of each breath. By comparing the expired air to a sample of room air, they were able to analyze how much oxygen the body was using at that intensity. The testing was also able to find what fuel source — carbohydrates or fats — the athlete is primarily utilizing.
Data on fuel utilization, as well as aerobic and anaerobic threshold estimates, give the strength staff and team dietitians valuable information that will help them adjust training and nutritional approach for each individual wrestler. A dozen leads attached to sensors were applied to the athletes’ chests, held in place by a mesh body vest, to collect aerobic capacity data via electrocardiogram, giving 12 “views” of the student-athletes’ hearts.
On the bike, resistance was built up every two minutes while graduate student Ivan Alonso checked blood pressure, also every two minutes. The goal was to get the wrestler to maximum heart rate. Cassandra Ledman, clinical associate professor of health and kinesiology, recorded data during the test and checked in with the wrestlers as they pedaled. Since the ventilator covered their mouths, the athletes had to point at the level of exertion they are feeling from six, the lowest and most comfortable, to 20, the highest and most difficult.
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[ Video credits: Purdue Athletics; Purdue Wrestling - YouTube Official Channel ]
