Department of Exercise Physiology

Overview

The Department of Exercise Physiology at the Netaji Subhas National Institute of Sports (NSNIS), Patiala, is a keystone of scientific sports support in India, operating under the Sports Authority of India (SAI). The dept. was established as part of the Faculty of Sports Sciences (introduced in 1983), the department focuses on monitoring, analyzing, and enhancing the physiological performance of elite athletes. The department provides scientific backup to elite athletes, including NCoE athletes, TOPS athletes, national campers etc.

MAIN OBJECTIVE IS TO SUPPORT

Monitoring of Physiological performance variables of top sports persons of the country: TOPS athletes, National Campers, SAI – NCOE, SAI – Training centre (STC), Khelo India (KI) athletes.
Phase wise Physiological testing, test analysis and test prescription advise
Academic classes of different online and offline classes (MSc. Course, PG Diploma, Refresher Course, Diploma, Certificate Course etc.).
Conduction of various knowledge development program, Online webinars, Pre-Conference workshop etc.
The department actively works towards creating a robust “High-Performance” sports ecosystem within India by integrating advanced physiological testing with practical training.
Variable wise Physiological Norms creation for Indian subcontinent origin.
Game wise Event specific testing Protocol formulation via Pilot study, Reliability and Validity work through prediction modelling.
Quality Research Work in the field of Sports Science.

Focused physiological testing areas:

Cardio-pulmonary fitness and Lung function (spirometry) testing
Heart rate variability (HRV) and cardiac recovery response
Physiological threshold (AT, VT, LT) monitoring
Anaerobic power profiling
Graded exercise testing (GxT) and Optimal performance testing
Various muscular strength adoption measurement
Lactate threshold (LT1 & LT2) based training planning
Field-based physiological performance monitoring
Physical and physiological fitness battery testing and test prescription
Physical workload monitoring
Lactate and Heart rate adaptive response measurement
Hypoxic chamber-based high-altitude training simulations

Equipment

Following are the list of available equipment at Dept. of Exercise Physiology, NSNIS Patiala:

S.No.	Equipment	Functions
1	Portable Metabolic Gas Analyzer (COSMED K5)	Cardiorespiratory variables measurement
2	Spirometry (COSMED CPET)	Lung Function Test (LFT)
3	Uphill inclined Treadmill (COSMED uphill reversible-belt treadmill)	Graded exercise test (GxT)
4	Anti-Gravity Treadmill (Alter-G)	Injury rehabilitation (lower body)
5	Bicycle Ergometer (COSMED Ergoselect)	Bicycle for performance testing
6	Watt-Bike (Atom-X)
7	Performance cyclist bike (Monark LC7-TT)	Cyclists’ performance & Endurance capacity measurement
8	Lower body – Peak Bike (MONARK 894E)	Anaerobic power measurement
9	Upper Body – Peak Bike (MONARK 891E)
10	Hypoxic Chamber ~90M3	High-altitude
11	Polar Team Pro (POLAR) Heart Rate (HR) sensors	Heart Rate (HR) measurement & analysis
12	Polar H9 Heart Rate (HR) sensors
13	Gpexe HR GPS monitoring system (Pro2 power tracker)	GPS monitoring with acceleration & deceleration analysis
14	Portable Lactate monitoring system (Lactate Scout 4)	Blood lactate analysis
15	Muscle oximeter (Artinis Portamon)	Muscle oxygenation analysis
16	Heart Rate Variability – HRV monitoring (Equivital eqO2+ Life Monitor)	Heart rate variability (HRV) analysis
17	Electromyography – EMG (Delsys Trigno)	Muscle activation measurement

Academics

Department is involved in teaching the following courses:

Master in Sports Coaching
Six Weeks Certificate Courses
Diploma in Sports Coaching
Refresher Courses
Diploma in Sports Medicine
Orientation Courses
Six Months Certificate Courses
Skill Development Courses etc.

RESEARCH AND PUBLICATIONs

Publication type: BOOK CHAPTER

Surojit Sarkar. ‘Deep dive into the concept of maximal lactate steady state (MLSS): a modern concept of endurance-dependent training modalities’. Integrated Approaches to Health and Sports Performance: A Comprehensive Guide to Training Modalities – Vol. 1; Pondicherry University: Published 2025.
Surojit Sarkar, Saranya K. ‘Post-exercise Recovery Nutrition Strategies with RPE Scale’. Book Series: ‘Methods and Protocols in Food Science’; Springer Nature: Published 2025. Link: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-0716-4370-9_12

Publication type: JOURNALS

(Total 38 publications) [2021 onwards published only given]

Singh YM, Sarkar S, Chaurasia A. (2025). Validity and Reliability Analysis Among Three Different Fat Assessment Methods in Trained Indian Male Athletes. Central European Journal of Sport Sciences and Medicine. 2025; 1(49): 119128. https://doi.org/10.18276/cej.2025.1-09
Gaoudam, N., Sakhamudi, S. K., Kamal, B., Addla, N., Reddy, E. P., Ambala, M., Lavanya, K., Palaparthi, E. C., Bhattam, A., Periasamy, P., Sayana, S. B., & Medabala, T. (2025). Wearable Devices and AI-Driven Remote Monitoring in Cardiovascular Medicine: A Narrative Review. Cureus, 17(8), e90208. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.90208
Palaparthi, E. C., Aditya Reddy, P., Padala, T., Sri Venkata Mahi Karthika, K., Paka, R., Ami Reddy, V., Ayub, S., Khyati Sri, V., Rebanth Nandan, V., Patnaik, P. K., Medabala, T., & Sayana, S. B. (2025). The Rise of Personalized Medicine in Heart Failure Management: A Narrative Review. Cureus, 17(5), e83731. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.83731.
Palaparthi, E. C., K, P., Ignasimuthu, A., N, G., Sade, N., Bade, N., Jakka, B. K., Gogineni, K. K., Dunde, A., Medabala, T., & Periasamy, P. (2025). Impact of Lifestyle Modifications Along With Pharmacological Treatment of Heart Failure: A Narrative Review. Cureus, 17(4), e81570. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.81570
Sarkar, S., Ganguly, S. & Medabala, T. (2024). Heart rate and blood lactate response along with grip strength deterioration during successive judo simulations (randori). TRENDS in Sport Sciences, 31(3), 169–178. https://doi.org/10.23829/TSS.2024.31.3-5.
Sarkar S, Ganguly S, Medabala T. Heart rate and blood lactate response along with grip strength deterioration during successive judo simulations (randori). TRENDS in Sport Sciences. 2024; 31(3): 169-178. DOI: 10.23829/TSS.2024.31.3-5
Singh YM, Chaurasia A, Sarkar S, Pathania A, Singh JR. (2024). Body Composition Analysis of Indian National Female Boxers: A Comparative Study among Various Weight Categories. International Journal of Kinanthropometry. 2024; 4(3): 66–75. https://doi.org/10.34256/ijk2437
Sarkar S, Dutta S, Chatterjee S, Tiwana K, Saraswat S. Influence of live high train high on physiological training adaptations and athletic performance in trained runners: an observational study. Central European Journal of Sport Sciences and Medicine. 2024; 48(2): 103-115. DOI: 10.18278/cci.2024.2-09
Borah P, Hussain I, Gogoi L, Govindasamy K, Sarkar S, Elayaraja M, Balaji E, Gogoi H. Effect of mat pilates training program on functional fitness in older adults. Pedagogy of Physical Culture and Sports. 2024. 16-25. DOI: 10.15561/26649837.2024.0102
Saibya S, Pandey G, Jadav AC, Rajpoot YS, Govindasamy K, Sarkar S, Gogoi H. Impact of circuit training on physical fitness among team sports athletes: a systematic review. Polish Journal of Physiotherapy. 2024; 24(1): 244-257. DOI: 10.56984/8ZG2EF82sK
Sarkar S, Bandyopadhyay A, Datta G, Dey SK. Effect of High-Intensity Interval Training on Hematological Variables and Lipid Profiles in Team Game Athletes. TRENDS in Sport Sciences. 2023, Accepted.
Sarkar S, Dey SK, Datta G, Bandyopadhyay A. Vitamin C and E supplementation and high-intensity interval training-induced changes in lipid profile and hematological variables of young males. Sports Med Health Sci. 2023. DOI: 10.1016/j.smhs.2023.03.006
Sarkar S, Dey SK, Datta G, Bandyopadhyay A. Reference interval for oxidative stress in young football and hockey players. TRENDS Sport Sci. 2023; 30(1): 21-28. DOI: 10.23829/TSS.2023.30.1-3
Sarkar S, Dey SK, Datta G, Bandyopadhyay A. Prediction of aerobic and anaerobic capacity from selected oxidative stress parameters, muscle damage indices, and inflammatory markers in soccer and hockey players. Pol J Sport Tourism. 2023; 30(1): 3-10. DOI: 10.2478/pjst-2023-0001
Sarkar S, Dey SK, Datta G, Bandyopadhyay A. Reference interval of muscle damage indices and cortisol in young athletes of various sports disciplines. Int J Phys Educ Fit Sports. 2022; 11(2): 35-44.
Sarkar S, Debnath M, Das M, Bandyopadhyay A, Dey SK, Datta GP. Effect of High Intensity Interval Training on Antioxidant Status, Inflammatory Response and Muscle Damage Indices in Endurance Team Male Players. Apunts Sports Med. 2021; 56: 100352. DOI: 10.1016/j.apunsm.2021.100352

Research Guidance

Department is involved in guiding of Masters in Sports Coaching students for M.Sc. Dissertation.

Year 23-24	Year 24-25	Year 25-26
6	3	7

Faculty Members

Tambi Medabala

High Performance Director
Exercise Physiology
SAI, NSNIS Patiala
MSc (Physiology)
H-index=6

Dr. Surojit Sarkar

High Performance Analyst
Exercise Physiology
SAI, NSNIS Patiala
MSc, PhD (Physiology)
H-index=7

Soubhory Ganguly

Performance Analyst
Exercise Physiology
SAI, NSNIS Patiala
MSc (Physiology)

DEPARTMENT OF SPORTS PHYSIOLOGY

SCIENTIFIC EQUIPMENTS & UTILITY

Sl. No.	Equipment	Measures/ Variables	Battery of tests/ Methods
1	Breath-by-Breath Metabolic Gas Analyser(COSMED CPET)	(a) Endurance capacity: VO2max (ml/kg/min) maximal volume of oxygen consumption per min time relative to body weight (b) Ventilatory equivalents and oxygen pulse (VO₂/HR) (c) VT- ventilatory threshold (d) Variables at AT (anaerobic threshold)- heart rate, VO₂ etc.) (e) Running economy (f) Physiological recovery adaptive conditioning (HR, VO₂, Lactate etc)	Graded exercise test (GXT) in laboratory on treadmill or bicycle ergometer
2	Spirometry (lung function analysis) COSMED CPET	(a) Lung function testing (PFT) (b) Obstructive (COPD) and Restrictive lung disease determination (c) Ventilatory capacity (VC) (d) Peak flow rate (PEFR) (e) Static and Dynamic lung volume measures	Pulmonary Function Test (PFT) Test.
3	Uphill inclined Treadmill (COSMED uphill reversible-belt treadmill)	(a) Graded exercise testing (GXT) to access maximal all-out effort and endurance capacity (b) Various running based training interventions	Graded exercise test (GXT)
4	Anti-Gravity Treadmill (Alter-G)	(a) Rehabilitation purpose for Lower limb injuries (b) Neuromuscular adaptations reestablishment during injury Rehab.	Rehabilitation purpose.
5	Bicycle Ergometer (COSMED Ergoselect)	(a) Graded exercise testing (GXT) to access maximal all-out effort and endurance capacity (b) PWC170 submaximal test to assess aerobic capacity (c) Lower limb-based trainings (cyclists)	Graded exercise test (GXT), Ramp Test.
6	Lower body anaerobic peak bike (MONARK Wingate bike)	(a) Anaerobic power profiling- peak, relative peak, average, minimum anaerobic power output (b) Fatigue index in response to the anaerobic power fatigability	Wingate test (WanT)
	Metamax 3B Gas Analyser	(a) VO2max (ml/kg/min) maximal volume of oxygen consumption per min time relative to body weight (b) Ventilatory equivalents and oxygen pulse (VO₂/HR) (c) VT- ventilatory threshold (d) Variables at AT (anaerobic threshold)- heart rate, VO₂ etc.) (e) Running economy (f) Physiological recovery adaptive conditioning (HR, VO₂, Lactate etc)	a) On field exercises (running, cycling, etc) (b) Real time exercises monitoring at sea level as well as high altitude training (Hypoxic chamber training) (c) Graded exercise test (GXT) in laboratory on treadmill or bicycle ergometer
7	Hypoxic Chamber ~90M³	(a) High-altitude hypoxic environment stimulations (b) Improvement in endurance capacity (c) Enhanced Iron profile and blood variables to push aerobic capacity	a) High Altitude training (i) Passive methods ( ~ 6 – 8 hrs/daily) (ii) Active methods ( ~ 1 – 2 hrs/daily)
8	Polar Team Pro (POLAR) heart rate sensors	(a) Heart rate response (b) HRresting, HRpeak, HRrecovery measures (c) Heart rate recovery adaptive profiling (d) Hear rate reserve (e) Heart rate deflection point (f) Heart rate variability (RMSSD, HF/LF index, pNN50 etc)	(a) Online monitoring during live match & real time training (b) Online monitoring and offline data of lab based and field based physiological tests.
9	Lactate Scout (Portable Lactate Analyser)	(a) Blood lactate adaptive response (basal, pre-exercise, during exercise, peak, and recovery) (b) Game bout simulations based Lactate response profiling (c) Lactate threshold measures	(a) Graded exercise test (GXT) on treadmill or bicycle ergometer in laboratory (b) Incremental exercises in field
10	Portable field based scientific equipment	All physiological field-based tests	Beep test Yo-yo test RAST test Other essential tests