fitness evaluations

[rdhdfmn]

Ok guys(and ladies),

I work for a Fire dept. in east texas and I had a question about fitness evaluations. We currently have a bicycle(total package was 13,000 dollars) that in a quick explination measures the amount of oxygen your body need to work. A person would get on the bicycle and ride anywhere from 6-9 minutes depending on your fitness level. The bike has a drum that is controlled by a tensioning system. You have to wear a heart monitor that talks with the software in the computer and adjusts the tension accordingly. The better shape that you are in the more tension on the belt. It keeps you within your normal heart range for your age. Your height and weight are factors also. Once you finish the test it gives you a vo2 reading. I have a couple of questions:

1. Has anyone ever hear of any type of test like this

2. Is it accurate.

We have some firefighters that whine and complain that it is not an accurate test and some of them want to adopt the army's fitness test that consists of running, full situps and a couple of other things. I give some of the tests to them and alot of them dont do any type of exercise to speak of. They are usually the loudest ones. How accurate is a running test? Can someone that exercises a little push themselves while running and actually show(through a timed run) that they are in great shape? I am a large framed guy and I am in the top 10 of our dept. But when it comes to running I suck. Thats for the replys......RD

 

[rdhdfmn]

Im gonna bump this. Someone has to know something..........RD

 

[The Shadow]

Im gonna bump this. Someone has to know something..........RD

Sounds like it measures VO2max uptake.

If so, I would not see why they would not be accurate.

 

[VRider]

These machines basically measure how efficiently your body uses oxygen, or your aerobic fitness. It is only one measure of fitness. Usually fitness is determined by a combination of strength, endurance, flexibility, VO2 max, and one other that I can't remember.

So this machine does not give an overall measure of fitness, just one of the components.

 

[rdhdfmn]

There are 2 other parts of the test we do. One is an 80lb bench press for as many times you can do it and the other is how much your 1 time curl is. Thers are a couple of reasons Im asking this. We have some guys that say that they do alot of cardio but when they get on the machine their heart reaches the upper limits before they finish the test. So there are 2 points here. Either they are lying about how much cardio the do or there is some type of glitch where people can have a very rapid heartbeat and still be fit according to the workload they are put under. Is that possible? RD

 

[VRider]

The theory is that if your cardiovascular system is "fit" your heart shouldn't have to work as hard when you are exerting yourself. This is due to 2 primary factors: 1) your heart muscle is strong and can pump more blood per beat. Therefore pushing the required amount of blood requires fewer beats. 2) your lungs are more efficient at exchanging oxygen and removing waste. Most people use less than 50% of their lung capacity, even under exertion. Athletes use closer to 90%.

Things that can throw this theory off though are 1) use of stimulants (i.e. caffine and ephidrine) that artificially raise your heart rate, even at rest and 2) stress. If taking and passing this test is a big deal, then mental stress can cause fight-or-flight reactions, including increased heart rate and breathing.

 

[rdhdfmn]

Very good answer....I think that is what is happening. Some of these guys are getting so worked up that it is raising their heartbeat. THanks for the reply.....RD

 

[rdhdfmn]

Im gonna bump it for the weekend.....RD

 

[DanG]

Yes, they are very accurate at measuring how well your body uses oxygen, but imo, it's not a terribly accurate measure of overall fitness. Better than BMI, but not the best out there.