Equipment: Cycloergometers (Jaeger, Monark); kayak ergometers (Simulator, K1 Ergo); rowing ergometers (Concept II, Gjessing); hand ergometer; treadmill (H-P-Cosmos); ergo-oxyscreen (Jaeger); metabolic measurement cart (Beckman); Vmax 29 (Sensor Medics); heart and circulation monitor (Medilog 3000, Telemetr Glonner, Polar Sport Tester); acid-base balance analysers (Corning 248); spirometer (abc Pneumo); Muscle Tester ME 3000 Professional (EMG analysis); measuring system for impedance cardiography; spectrophotometer. Research methods: Measuring respiratory and circulatory parameters, indices of aerobic and anaerobic metabolism, acid-base balance; blood lactate, glucose, urea creatine kinase (by using commercial kits); determination of local muscle fatigue-endurance by EMG. Principal subjects: Physiology of sport and exercise; physiological adaptation to training loads in elite and junior athletes. Current research: Aerobic and anaerobic work capacity in former highly trained rowers during immediate period following sport training cessation (Project B-1); Exercise adaptation in nervous control of heart function (HRV) in former high performance athletes (B-1); Effects of pulmonary functions on physical capacity in rowers (B-2); Indirect method of maximal oxygen intake estimation in orienteers (B-1); Indirect method of maximal oxygen intake estimation in maximal exercise on rowing ergometer (B-2); Relationship between aerobic and anaerobic capacity in athletes (B-3); Anaerobic capacity of upper limbs in male and female kayakers (B-3). The influence of involuntary static exertion (handgrip) on the capability to perform submaximal and maximal dynamic exercise in males of high physical capacity (B-2). Research achievements: The rate of age-related decline in aerobic fitness were studied in 67 former highly trained oarsmen and paddlers (30-67 years old). The athletes were classified as physically active (A) or less active (L), depending on the level of their continued recreation training. The average maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max) total work output (WT), oxygen uptake (VO2AT ) and power output (PAT) at the anaerobic threshold (4 mmol/l lactate) were significantly higher in group A than those in group L, within the same age span. In both groups the physical fitness was well above average reported for nonathletes in the Polish population of the same age. The VO2max, VO2AT, WT and PAT values declined with age at an average yearly rate of 0.73 ml * kg-1 * min-1 (r = -0.78), 0.42 ml * kg-1 * min-1 (r = -0.64), 0.090 kJ * kg-1 (r = -0.72) and 0.035 W * kg-1 (r = -0.62) respectively in the A group and at an average yearly rate of 0.31 ml * kg-1 * min-1 (r = -0.33), 0.09 ml * kg-1 * min-1 (r = -0.18), 0.031 kJ * kg-1 (r =-0.38) and 0.011 W * kg-1 (r = -0.24) respectively in the group L. The rate of age-related decline of the aerobic fitness indices in the group A was similar to that reported previously for endurance trained athletes. There was a tendency to the slower reduction with age in the VO2max, VO2AT, WT, and PAT values in the group L, however, no significant differences were seen in the slope values of the regression lines in the group A as compared to the group L. The effects of the acute normobaric hypoxia (breathing nitrogen-oxygen gas composition containing 16.2% of oxygen) during a graded exercise on a treadmill were studied in 7 middle and long distance runners. At the same submaximal running velocities there were significantly higher changes in heart rate and blood lactate concentration and no differences in oxygen uptake between normoxic and hypoxic conditions. When the work load was expressed as a percentage of VO2max, the changes in lactate concentration were the same in the both studied conditions but heart rate was lower in hypoxia than normoxia. For the practical purpose the relationship between circulatory (heart rate) and metabolic (lactate) changes was established. It shows that to sustain training intensity during the hypoxic condition at the same metabolic range (e.g. anaerobic threshold) as in the normoxic one the target heart rate should be lower in hypoxia by around 6 beats per minute. The components of static work (performed by arms) and dynamic work (performed by legs) was estimated in men (rowers) during incremental, dynamic exercise. Maximal voluntary contraction force (MVC) and handgrip, with an intensity of 50% of the MVC, were performed by subjects one day before the dynamic test. Electromyography activity (EMG) was measured symmetrically from brachioradialis (BR) and rectus femoris (RF) muscles by a 4-channel EMG system. EMG signal of each specific muscle was distributed automatically as a percentage of the total integrated EMG activity (IEMG) and represented an individual muscle work load. During handgrip the distribution of work load for BR was 41% (dex) and 50% (sin) while for RF was 4% and 5% respectively. During dynamic exercise the distribution of work load changed in the course of the exercise. For BR the distribution was 24%-34% at the beginning and 32%-31% at the end of exercise. The respective values for RF were: 21%-21% and 32%-31%. During the whole dynamic test the average value of static component was 49% whereas the dynamic component constituted only 51% of the total work load expressed by EMG. It is concluded that there exists a strong static component during dynamic incremental exercise performed by rowers. The static component may decrease the capacity of an organism to perform the dynamic test. The effects of the kind of sports practiced by athletes on heart rate variability (HRV) was studied in 36 national elite kayakers (16-26 yr old), 12 national elite judoists (17-36 yr old), and 82 untrained male subjects (18-36 yr old). Heart function was studied by recording 512 cycles in every subject and evaluating the time and frequency domains. From the former, the HRV (SDNN) was computed. The frequency domain was subjected to fast Fourier transformation and from the resulting power spectrum the following components were analysed: low frequency (LF; 0.05-0.15 Hz), associated with the sympathetic and partly parasympathetic activities and corresponding to the blood pressure dependent variability, and high frequency (HF; 0.15-0.35 Hz) associated with the parasympathetic activity and corresponding to the respiratory sinus variability. Both components were expressed as percent fractions of the power spectrum (mean±SD). The SDNN in kayakers (76±30) and judoists (79±30) were significantly higher (p<0.01) than in the control group. LF values were significantly (p<0.001) lower in athletes than in the control group (26.2±6.3, 24.1±5.4, and 28.6±7.0, respectively). Additionally, both athletic groups differed significantly from one another (p<0.001). The HF values did not differ significantly between the groups (30.1±6.1, 26.8±7.6 and 27.3±6.8, respectively). In all of these relationships the effect of age was eliminated. The coefficient of correlation between HF and LF data was ~ -0.44 in all groups studied. In conclusion, the kind of physical training affects at least some frequency domain variables. Judo training depressed the sympathetic activity more than did the kayaking training. The increased HRV (SDNN) in these elite athletes seems to depend more on inhibiting the sympathetic activity than on an increased vagal activity. Twelve girls (11.7 ± 0.2 years old) involved in regular training with the specialization of rowing were examined twice a year for 4 consecutive years and two control groups of girls aged 11.5 ± 0.3 years (n=13) and 14.4 ± 0.3 years (n=18) were examined simultaneously with trained girls in the first and last year of the study, respectively. The body mass, height and fat content were slightly greater in trained than in untrained girls. None of the subjects reported disturbances in menstrual function and the age of menarche in trained girls was close to that in untrained subjects (12.1 ± 0.4 vs. 12.5 ± 0.4 years , respectively). Both trained and untrained girls reported similar daily energy intake close to the lower limit or slightly below the FAO/WHO/UNU estimates of energy requirements for adolescents. Resting metabolic rate calculated per kg of total body mass or lean body mass was lower (p<0.001, p<0.01, respectively) in trained than in untrained girls while the thermogenic effect of glucose was greater (p<0.05) in the former. Plasma insulin concentrations measured 2h after glucose ingestion (50 g) were lower in trained than in untrained girls. The results suggest that in circumpubertal girls, increased physical activity leads to energy conservation at rest in postabsorptive state and a tendency towards enhancement of food-induced thermogenesis. The study to evaluate the most significantly discriminate indices for rowers groups of different performance level and to determine physiological profile of highly trained Polish male and female rowers, juniors and seniors was conducted on elite and subelite Polish rowers, 215 male (108 seniors and 107 juniors) and 90 female ones (45 seniors and 45 juniors). The rowers were subjected to two laboratory exercise-tests performed on a Concept-II rowing ergometer: a maximal exercise test simulating the 2-km race (2-km test) and a graded submaximal test. The recorded variables were compared in six pairs of groups. The groups under comparison consisted of subjects of the same sex and age (junior, senior) but different competition performance level. The obtained data suggests that the most predictive parameters of the competition performance in rowers are: mean power output in the maximal exercise simulating 2 km-race, power output at the anaerobic threshold, maximal oxygen uptake and maximal oxygen pulse. To elucidate whether the physical fitness of the most successful athletes differs from that of other top elite athletes 154 wrestlers, who were divided into the more (M) and less (L) successful competitors was subjected to the investigation. The M athletes were further divided into 3 subgroups which included 31 winners of the National Championships in the Greco-Roman style (group M1), 26 winners of the National Championships in the free style (group M2), and 20 medal-winners at either Olympic Games, World or European Championships (group M3). The L athletes were also subdivided into 3 groups (L1, L2, and L3) and included those who in the National Championships placed 2nd or 3rd to those who, in the same contest, style and weight category, won the championship and were therefore allocated to groups M1, M2, and M3, respectively. The data for the study were collected from 1989 to 1998. The average age of the athletes from group M was significantly higher than that of the L athletes. All the wrestlers were subjected to the following three tests on the Monark becycle ergometer: the incremental exercise until exhaustion (VO2max, anaerobic threshold, PWC-170) and two anaerobic Wingate tests for the legs and arms. Compared to the respective wrestlers from the L group, both the medallists as well as the national champions in the free style exhibited significantly higher values of VO2max (57.1 ± 5.7 and 54.9 ± 6.7 vs. 54.1 ± 7.0 and 50.8 ± 5.7 ml * kg-1 * min-1, respectively) and PWC-170 (3.24 ± 0.29 and 3.05 ± 0.48 vs. 3.01 ± 0.43 and 2.74 ± 0.37 W * kg-1, respectively). Moreover, in the medallists, the anaerobic power values obtained for both the legs and the arms were significantly higher than those obtained in their respective counterparts (11.5 ± 0.8 and 9.8 ± 0.4 vs. 11.0 ± 1.0 and 9.4 ± 0.8 W * kg-1. This latter index, however, did not differ significantly between the national champions and the respective wrestlers form the L subgroups. Likewise, insignificant differences were detected between the athletes from the respective M and L groups with respect to the anaerobic threshold power output and anaerobic capacity values. Applied research: Assessment of performance and physical work capacity from respiratory, circulatory and metabolic responses to laboratory exercises tests; tests for aerobic capacity (VO2max, anaerobic threshold); tests for anaerobic capacity for lower and/or upper limbs (Wingate Test); sport-specific exercise tests; evaluation of responses to training and competition loads; monitoring of training. Sports studied: kayaking, rowing, judo, wrestling, taekwondo, modern pentathlon, orienteering, tennis, cycling, volleyball, biathlon, skiing, figure skating.