Lectures

Introduces foundational concepts of physical activity and exercise in relation to energy expenditure and metabolic strain. Covers short-term homeostatic balancing during exercise, including cardiovascular, respiratory, metabolic and thermoregulatory responses. Presents homeostasis and hormesis as complementary frameworks for exercise-induced inflammation, contrasting negative feedback dynamics with biphasic dose-response adaptation, and discussing implications for healthy athletes and clinical populations (ME/CFS, Long COVID). Explores the physiology of sleep and wakefulness, including sleep architecture, NREM/REM cycles, and the bidirectional relationship between exercise and sleep quality.

Establishes the immunological foundations - the structure and cellular components of the innate and adaptive immune systems, the chronological immune response to viral infections, the role of dendritic cells, NK cells, and lymphocytes, and the principles of laboratory diagnostics at three levels of complexity.

Translates these foundations to the epidemiology and pathophysiology of upper respiratory tract infections in physically active individuals and competitive athletes, covering symptom characterization, cytokine-mediated acute phase responses, and the clinical relevance of infection foci.

Describes the biphasic immune cell response to acute dynamic exercise in mechanistic detail — lymphocytosis, lymphopenia, hormonal regulation via the SNS and HPA axis, intensity dependence — and contrasts this with the immunological adaptations induced by regular physical activity, including myokine release and the J-shaped risk model.

Examines the consequences of excessive training load - the pathophysiology of overtraining and functional overreaching, the characteristic warning signs across performance, cardiovascular, psychological, and immunological domains, and evidence-based strategies for infection risk minimisation.

Defines the anaerobic threshold as the upper border of the aerobic–anaerobic transition (MLSS), compares fixed (4 mmol/L) and individualised threshold concepts, walks through a Stegmann tangent worked example, and derives heart-rate–anchored training zones — with a critical look at why %VO₂max and %HRmax fall short as prescription anchors.

Analyses the biphasic exercise leukocytosis and its cell-type-specific kinetics, contrasts exercise- versus infection-induced immune responses, explains the β2-adrenergic and cortisol axes driving demargination and delayed neutrophilia, and examines when anaerobic training crosses the threshold into an acute phase response — with a longitudinal perspective on overtraining immunophenotypes and trace-element redistribution.

Traces the evolution of lactate from a metabolic byproduct to a central regulator of human physiology, highlighting its continuous aerobic production, role as a primary fuel source, and function as a signaling molecule across cellular and systemic levels. It also introduces lactate-based performance diagnostics, emphasizing individualized thresholds and curve analysis to assess training adaptation, endurance capacity, and metabolic dysfunction in conditions such as Long COVID and ME/CFS.

Extends the exercise–immunity framework to oncology - epidemiological evidence for the anti-cancer effects of physical activity, the role of myokines and exercise-mobilised immune effectors (NK cells, CD8⁺ T cells, γδ T cells), mechanisms of tumour immune infiltration, and the clinical potential of exercise-combined immunotherapy and adoptive cell transfer.

Introduces the micronutrient dimension of exercise immunology, presenting original data on the acute effects of a standardised sit-to-stand test on selenium, zinc, copper, and iron biomarkers — demonstrating how exercise-induced haemodynamic changes, oxidative stress, and immune activation alter trace element distribution and highlighting the practical implications for sports medicine laboratory interpretation.

Synthesises the preceding lectures into a framework for the *standardised evaluation of symptoms and signs* of both exercise-induced and infection-based immunological stress regulation — providing validated assessment instruments, diagnostic algorithms, and practical decision tools for clinical and field application.

Explores how wearable devices enable continuous monitoring of physiological signals to better understand, predict, and manage infection-associated chronic illnesses such as Long COVID and ME/CFS. It highlights how changes in heart rate, heart rate variability, and activity patterns can reveal risk factors, predict symptom flare-ups, and support personalized pacing strategies, bridging the gap between real-world physiology and episodic clinical care.