Better decisions start with better information and a clear understanding of how to use it.

Durango Sports Lab offers fitness and performance testing to help you understand aerobic capacity, metabolism, training zones, body composition, and fitness progress. Testing is useful for endurance athletes, active adults, and anyone seeking objective information to support performance, health, and long-term fitness goals.

VO2 max testing 

VO2 max testing measures maximal aerobic capacity. This can help you understand your current aerobic fitness profile and how it relates to endurance performance, cardiovascular fitness, and training progression.

Common goals include improving VO2 max, optimizing training zones, tracking fitness progress, and improving endurance performance.

Lactate and metabolic testing

Lactate and metabolic testing provides deeper insight into how your body uses carbohydrates and fats during exercise. It can also help estimate physiological thresholds that guide pacing, fueling, and training intensity.

Common goals include improving aerobic capacity, refining fueling, preventing overtraining, improving race performance, and optimizing training zones.

Resting metabolic rate testing

Resting metabolic rate testing helps estimate how many calories your body burns at rest and how your body uses carbohydrates and fats for energy.

This information can support nutrition, fueling, body composition, and performance strategies.

Body composition analysis

Body composition testing provides detailed insight into muscle mass, body fat percentage, segmental muscle balance, water distribution, and overall body composition trends.

This gives a more complete picture than body weight alone and can help track health, recovery, strength, and performance changes over time.

What happens during a testing session

Most testing sessions begin with a conversation about your goals, training history, current fitness, and questions. From there, the DSL team completes the appropriate assessment and reviews the key findings with you.

The goal is not simply to collect data. The goal is to help you understand what the data means in the context of your individual goals and provide practical guidance you can apply to training, recovery, performance, or overall health.

What you receive

Depending on the test, you may receive detailed reports, charts, training zone recommendations, metabolic data, body composition printouts, fueling considerations, and practical next steps.

How to prepare

Preparation depends on the test. In general, arrive rested, hydrated, properly fueled, and ready for the level of exertion expected in your scheduled test.

Some tests require specific restrictions for food, caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, or exercise before the appointment. Review the preparation instructions before your visit.

Required forms

Exercise testing requires a completed Fort Lewis College activity waiver and PAR-Q+ health screening before scheduling or participation. Physician clearance may be required if the screening identifies a concern.

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