Relationship between the talk test and ventilatory threshold
File(s)
Date
1999Author
Dehart, Mehgan
Advisor(s)
Foster, Carl
Porcari, John
Mikat, Richard
Fater, Dennis
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
The Talk Test is a widely recommended form of prescribing exercise intensity, however
very few studies have specifically evaluated its physiological validity. This study
evaluated the relationship between the Talk Test and physiologic changes occurring with
exercise. We examined healthy volunteers during incremental exercise. Each subject (N
= 28) completed two maximal exercise tests. One test used gas analysis to identify
ventilatory threshold (VT). The second was identical, except without respiratory
measurements. During this test, the subject read a standard paragraph and reported
whether or not they passed the Talk Test. Outcomes at VT and the last positive,
positive/negative, and negative stages of the Talk Test were compared. There was a
significant (p < .05) difference between VO2, % VO2peak, HR, and % HRpeak at VT and
the positive stage of the Talk Test. There was no significant difference between any of
the variables at VT and the positive/negative stage. There was a significant difference
between all the outcomes at VT and the negative stage of the Talk Test. We conclude
that when subjects could either talk comfortably or were equivocal, they were at or below
their VT. Subjects clearly failing the Talk Test were consistently beyond their VT. Thus,
the Talk Test is a valid subjective measure to guide exercise prescription.
Subject
Treadmill exercise tests
Exercise -- Physiological aspects
Respiration -- Measurement
Anaerobiosis