Predicting physical performance decline in professional athletes using functional stress testing data

The article, considering international experience and the experience of our own research, provides an analysis of programs for stress ergometric testing of various sports (disciplines) with ECG and gas analysis in accordance with a submaximal or maximal (refusal to work) load protocol. It has been confirmed that stress testing in athletes is a universal method for assessing their level of physical performance (both general and specific), as well as a method for identifying a decrease in tolerance to physical activity as a precursor to the development of fatigue. Load testing plays a significant role in sports medicine: in assessing the current functional state of an athlete and tolerance of training/competition loads, in assessing the current ability of an athlete’s body to adapt to changing environmental conditions, as well as in the scientific search for predictors of the development of maladaptive processes.