Abstract des Autors

By using micromethods, the determination of blood lactate concentration is not very difficult. For this reason lactate has become a significant value in endurance sports. It is also a common belief that a certain intensity or a "threshold" exists at which training leads to an optimal increase of endurance performance. However, the increase of blood lactate concentration during and after exercise is only a sign of the contribution of glycolysis to the energy supply of the working muscles and lactate itself does not rigger the active adaptation process which is necessary for the development of a higher endurance. As the elevation of blood lactate is the result of the simultaneous formation, accumulation and elimination of lactate in the muscle, other tissues and blood, a solid theoretical basis is also necessary for really understanding what happens. It is the aim of this paper to add some of the necessary elements to the theory of energy metabolism as a tool for the interpretation of the test results applied to endurance, especially to marathon running performance. Verf.-Referat