From an early stage in his career, Martijn van Hooff became fascinated by how the human body responds to exercise and how subtle abnormalities in blood flow can have a significant impact on athletic performance. During his PhD research, he developed innovative methods to measure oxygen saturation and cycling power patterns during exercise. These techniques enabled faster and more accurate identification of blood flow limitations in athletes. His work not only improved diagnostic capabilities but also provided valuable new insights into the effectiveness of surgical treatments.