METABOLIC TESTING TO DETERMINE YOUR TRAINING ZONES, ENERGY DEMANDS, WEIGHT LOSS, NUTRITION AND PERFORMANCE STRATEGY.

To understand the importance of metabolic testing below are highlights from “METABOLIC EFFICIENCY TRAINING – TEACHING THE BODY TO BURN MORE FAT” by Bob Seebohar, MS, RD, CSSD, CSCS

1.  UNDERSTAND ENERGY DEMANDS.  "It is a common mis-perception that we only burn fat or carbohydrate during exercise.   The opposite is true across most intensity levels. We use both carbohydrate and fat to fuel exercise up to maximal intensities," says Seebohar.

The percentage of macronutrient will depend on individual characteristics, most notably exercise and nutrition adaptations.  Go figure... you are what you eat:)

An athlete who is more aerobically conditioned can use more fat as energy at higher intensities and this can provide a glycogen sparing effect (preserving internal stores of carbohydrate).  This is important, especially to the long distance athlete. Have you experienced or heard of athletes bonking or having G.I. issues in marathons or long distance triathlons and cycling events?  So, consuming a high carbohydrate diet or doing too much high intensity training at inappropriate times of the year can reduce metabolic efficiency.  

2.  BE METABOLIC EFFICIENT.  Metabolic efficiency can be easily manipulated in a rather short amount of time. It is difficult to predict an athlete’s metabolic efficiency without formal metabolic testing.  The information from metabolic testing is crucial for designing a training and nutrition program to improve metabolic efficiency.  So in accordance with Bob Seebohar's guidelines and recommendations, it is critical to know how metabolically efficient you are prior to going into competition.  

3.  KNOW YOUR ENERGY DEMANDS THROUGH METABOLIC TESTING.  From a metabolic test you can find how many sugars to fat you are burning during various intensity levels. The metabolic test will also provide information in establishing training and nutrition strategies.

4. DEVELOP A PLAN TO IMPROVE YOUR METABOLIC EFFICIENCY. I have seen up to 20 percent improvement with many of my clients within a very short time frame, but it is critical to perform a metabolic test to fully understand their abilities.  I recommend to my clients that are sugar burners to reboot their training and nutrition to become more metabolically efficient. The path to improve metabolic efficiency is not difficult.  I explain the appropriate nutrition and training methods with my clients once the metabolic test is complete and we review the results.     So call or email me to schedule a metabolic test to meet your training and fitness goals.
​
If you think you do not need a metabolic test or you are not sure check out this link from Joe Friel’s blog:      http://www.joefrielsblog.com/2010/10/fat-burners-and-sugar-burners.html