percent of PMHR during Stage 1, and last, to elicit a HR response that is approximately 70 to 80 percent
of PMHR during Stage 2. There will be times where the selected protocol results in a HR response that is
higher or lower than expected. When this occurs, the treadmill technologist will need to change to either
an easier or more difficult protocol to help reach the goal. The decision to change the exercise protocol
should be made during the beginning of the test–the Warm-up stage. No decision in changing the protocol
should be made after the Warm-up stage. If the ISIS “Change Protocol” button is selected during Stage 1
or 2, the system will display this message: “The protocol cannot be changed after Warm-up.”
Throughout the Warm-up stage, monitor the %HRmax scale on ISIS screen. The SP’s HR
should be within the 50 percent to 60 percent range. The %HRmax scale on the computer screen
displays the HR in beats per minute for 50 percent, 60 percent, and 100 percent of PMHR for the SP. The
SP’s current HR will be displayed on the BP monitor. If this reading is above or below the 50 to 60
percent range, follow the procedures in 3.12.1 or 3.1 2 .2 for changing the protocol. The decision to change
the protocol must be made by 1 minute 30 seconds into the Warm-up stage to allow time to make all the
necessary adjustments. If the protocol needs to be changed, the Change Protocol button on the ISIS screen
should be pressed during the last 30 seconds in Warm-up, but the setting on the treadmill controller
should not be changed until the treadmill automatically moves to the next stage. The treadmill is
programmed to move to the next stage at specific times. If it is advanced to a new protocol during one
stage, it will advance again to the next stage when the preset time is reached for the next stage.
There are 16 horizontal lights on the treadmill display. See Figure 3-4. The first four lights
represent the current protocol (Warm-up, Stage 1, Stage 2, and Recovery). The next three lights represent
the next lower protocol (Stage 1, Stage 2, and Recovery) and the next three lights represent the next
higher protocol (Stage 1, Stage 2, and Recovery). The next lower and next higher protocols are repeated a
second time to allow the technologist to advance to the correct protocol if he or she overshoots the
protocol the first time. The controller does not allow moving backward through the protocols. You can
only advance to the next protocol. A blinking light represents the stage that the SP is currently
performing.