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The performance analysis: what it measures and how it works
Novogenia’s performance analysis is a lifestyle genetic analysis for sport. It shows tendencies toward power or endurance, VO2max potential and recovery; the report adds training guidance and food ratings adapted to a higher training load. Each gene is backed by at least three independent studies. It starts with a saliva sample; the analysis in our own lab takes 4 days, and the report arrives digitally in up to 18 languages. It does not measure current fitness, make a diagnosis or predict injuries. In Switzerland, a health professional listed in Art. 40 GUMV orders it.
251 variants, 128 confirmed: why selection matters
Sport genetics is growing fast. By the end of May 2023, researchers had linked 251 DNA variants to elite athlete status. 128 of them had been confirmed in at least two studies: 41 for endurance, 45 for power and 42 for strength (Semenova et al., Genes, 2023).
That is a wonderful treasure trove – and at the same time the reason a filter is needed. Think of gene selection as a sieve. At Novogenia, it has a fixed mesh size: a gene is only included in the analysis if at least three independent studies support the effect. What stays in the sieve goes into the report. For you as a provider, this means: do not ask “How many genes?” first, but “How well is each one supported?”
What the performance analysis looks at
The performance analysis reads genes that influence how your body responds to training. Each topic is a chapter of its own in the performance report:
| Topic | What it is about | How you use it in training |
|---|---|---|
| Power or endurance | genes such as ACTN3 and ACE that are linked to fast muscle fibers or to endurance | set a focus, clarify expectations (Genes and sport) |
| VO2max potential | genes linked to endurance capacity | plan endurance goals realistically, measure progress against personal history |
| Recovery | genes linked to recovery after exercise | plan recovery windows and sleep deliberately (Recovery) |
| Nutrition under high load | training guidance and food ratings adapted to a higher training load | match nutrition to the training volume (Sports nutrition by genetic profile) |
VO2max is the largest amount of oxygen your body can take up and use per minute – the engine size of your endurance motor, so to speak. The VO2max potential in the report describes a genetic tendency, not a measured value. How big someone’s engine is today is shown by a performance test; how much they gain through training is shown by the next one.
Just as important is what the analysis does not do: it does not measure current fitness, make a diagnosis, predict injuries or pass judgment on talent. Performance tests such as lactate testing or cardiopulmonary exercise testing remain the job of the gym, sports medicine or physiotherapy. The rule of thumb: genes provide the tendency, measurement the current status.
From saliva sample to report
- Inform and obtain consent: Your client learns what the analysis shows and what it does not, who sees the report and how the data are protected – and consents in writing.
- Take the saliva sample: with the saliva collection kit, at the gym, in the practice or at home. The instructions in the kit are what count; the sample must be clearly assigned to the right person.
- Ship to the lab: The sample goes to our own lab in Eugendorf near Salzburg, Austria.
- Analysis: In the lab, DNA is extracted from the saliva and the relevant genes are read. This takes 4 days.
- Report: It is available digitally in a secure portal, in up to 18 languages, and printed on request.
- Report session: Together, you translate the tendencies into a training plan – how is shown in Personalizing training with genetic data.
Use the waiting time: a performance test at the start provides the baseline against which you measure progress later. That way, genes and measurements sit side by side in the report session – which is where the best conversations happen.
The report: personal, color-coded, honest
Each chapter of the performance report shows the person’s own genotype, a color-coded rating and recommendations tailored to it. Genes are deliberately described there simply as “functioning” or “impaired.” That is a simplification; the technical term is genetic variants.
The report is honest in its framing, too: the genetic traits are well documented; the recommendations derived from them are logical conclusions, not scientifically proven. Because genes do not change during a lifetime, the result remains valid. What can evolve is the scientific interpretation – so it pays to bring the report out again with every new training goal. And genes are one factor among many: training, technique, nutrition, sleep and motivation count at least as much.
Anyone who wants to dig deeper will find the science behind individual chapters in the gene stories, such as Power, endurance and the ACTN3 gene. How to explain results clearly is shown in Explaining a genetic report clearly.
Who may offer the analysis
At Novogenia, there is a clear line: sales partners can offer only non-medical analyses – lifestyle, nutrition, beauty and sport. Medical genetic analyses are available only through physicians. Countries draw the line differently:
- Germany: The Genetic Diagnostics Act applies to genetic examinations for medical purposes, for clarifying parentage, and in insurance and employment (Section 2(1) GenDG). Mind the gray zone: an examination meant to clarify whether genetic traits are present that, together with the effect of certain external factors, can trigger a disease or health disorder also counts as diagnostic and therefore medical (Section 3 No. 7(b) GenDG). What matters is what the analysis is meant to clarify and how the report describes it.
- Austria: The Gene Technology Act defines a genetic analysis as a lab analysis that allows statements about carrier status, a disease risk, an existing disease or the course of a disease or therapy (Section 4 No. 23 GTG).
- Switzerland: Here the rules are the strictest and the most specific. Analyses of physical activity count as tests of particularly sensitive characteristics (Art. 37(1) GUMV). Only health professionals working in that field may order them (Art. 34(1) and (2) GUMG): physicians, pharmacists, psychologists, druggists HF and, for physiological characteristics, nutritionists FH, physiotherapists FH, chiropractors and osteopaths (Art. 40 GUMV). Fitness trainers are not among them. The sample is collected in the presence of the person ordering the test (Art. 34(3) GUMG); self-tests may only be supplied for other tests, such as eye color (Art. 13 GUMG, Art. 37(3) GUMV). Because our lab is in Austria, written consent to analysis abroad is required (Art. 36 in conjunction with Art. 29(d) GUMG). And tests that provide information about an increased risk of sports injuries count as medical in Switzerland (Art. 37(2)(e) GUMV).
A Swiss gym or trainer therefore works with one of these professionals, who orders the analysis and is present when the sample is taken. All the details in a country comparison: Who may offer genetic tests?
Who the analysis suits – and who it does not
The analysis brings the most value to adults who train regularly and want to shape their plan more consciously: ambitious recreational athletes, people whose progress has stalled, or members who want to understand why some things come easier to them than others. Good starting conditions are:
- a concrete goal, such as more strength, a first half marathon or a better return to training;
- a willingness to measure progress with tests and adjust the plan;
- an interest in looking at recovery and nutrition as well.
Hit the brakes if someone expects a diagnosis, is in pain or wants an injury predicted – then the first step is a visit to a physician. Under Novogenia’s terms, only non-medical analyses are carried out for minors, and only with the written consent of the persons having custody. Even so, the analysis is not meant for talent selection or for steering the training of children and adolescents (Webborn et al., British Journal of Sports Medicine, 2015); more in Clubs and teams.
Combining it with nutrition and supplements
The performance analysis combines well with other lifestyle analyses. The nutrition analysis shows, for example, how quickly the body breaks down caffeine (CYP1A2) – an exciting topic before training. More in Sports nutrition by genetic profile.
Novogenia’s personalized supplements also take sport into account: a high training load enters the calculation through the questionnaire, because competitive sport raises the calculated requirement. Every dose stays within fixed limits, at most up to EFSA’s tolerable upper intake level (Dosing limits). What this looks like for athletes is explained in Micronutrients for athletes and Anti-doping: using supplements safely.
Frequently asked questions
Which genes does the performance analysis look at?
How does the saliva sample work?
How quickly are results available?
Does the analysis measure my current fitness?
Who sees the report?
Related: Performance: the genetics of training and sport · Who may offer genetic tests? · Saliva collection kit
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Request a project →Performance analysisNote: This guide is general information for businesses and professionals and does not replace medical or legal advice. The genetic traits determined in a genetic analysis are well documented (each gene included is backed by at least three independent studies); recommendations derived from them are logical conclusions, not scientifically proven. Regulations can change; errors and changes excepted.