The effect of prolonged elevation of blood adrenaline concentration (sustained up to 60 h) on exercise performance and lactate threshold (TLA) was investigated in 24 rats on the basis of a incremental, multistage treadmill exercise test, performed before and after subcutaneous implantation of retard adrenaline tablets (15 mg), which release adrenaline at a constant rate of approx. 1.6 micrograms min-1. Blood samples for lactate (LA) determinations were taken from the rats' tails after each exercise stage. The results obtained indicate that hyperadrenalinemia within the physiologic range, sustained for 6 or 12 h, decreases exercise performance, measured as the maximal speed of running, increases blood LA concentration during submaximal and maximal exercise, and shifts TLA toward lower exercise intensities than in control or sham-operated rats. When adrenaline excess was maintained for 60 h the maximal running speed was still reduced, and exercise blood LA was even higher than during earlier stages of hyperadrenalinemia, but TLA returned to control values. In the rat, a moderate excess of circulating adrenaline, sustained up to 60 h, reduces maximal exercise performance, and causes marked elevations in submaximal and maximal blood lactate concentration. However, this is accompanied by lowering of TLA only in the early stages of hyperadrenalinemia (6 and 12 h), which suggests that shifts of TLA may occur independently of absolute levels of blood lactate during graded exercise.