Fitness test - lot to take in!

After a good 24-36 hours of no training and no food /caffeine for 3 hours beforehand I was ready for my Vo2 max / lactate threshold fitness test with the Coach (Mark Tickner - Coach4Tri).

I found the whole experience very interesting and just realised how little I know about the technical side of training, understanding your body and how well it functions in the sport of triathlon. To be honest, up to now you could say I have been training to become fit rather than be a triathlete.

Before the test started there was a bit of useful advice in respect of bike maintenance. My headset was a little loose because my front forks were cut short (previous owner!). In fact, the Coach recommended I should not ride it until it is sorted - potentially unsafe. Fortunately I think I can get away with taking a carbon spacer out and dropping the aerobars rather than purchase a new longer front fork. Elsewhere there was some fine tuning of brakes and gears and some simple lubing to get rid of a few squeaks.

In terms of the test I jumped on my tri bike, which was connected to a TACX turbo, calibrated beforehand to measure power (Watts) accurately. I had a mask on plugged into a machine and PC to measure some O2 and CO2 data, Vo2, volume of air, all kinds of interesting stuff, together with a calculation when my energy systems convert from aerobic to anaerobic. In addition it plotted an interesting chart on how my body burnt fat - back to this later. During the test the Coach took blood from my ear to get some readings on the lactate. Elsewhere another PC attached to the turbo measured Power, speed etc. - all high tech stuff!

So the idea was that after 5-10 mins warm up I was asked to increase my power by 30 watts every 5 mins until I was about cooked and then a final 10-20 seconds all out until your body effectively gives up. I started about 150 watts (4/10 effort) and moved through the 30 watt increases steadily with blood being taken every 5 min for the lactate reading. By the time I got to 240 watts (good 6/10 effort) I was beginning to feel the pain. I managed to do 5 mins at 270 watts (8/10 effort) but my body was starting to suffer at 300 (9/10 effort). The Coach was carefully monitoring all my vital signs and knew when to demand the last 10-20 seconds push. Thereafter I had a short recovery before getting back to 150 watts, which helps to provide data about how long it takes your body to recover.

I don't expect to understand all the data (the Coach is going to send me a report) but the key points are as follows:

1. In terms of my cycling position - not too bad, however whereas my left leg looks quite effective (drives up and down like a piston) my right leg moves a little to the left and right. The Coach recommended some strength work to help cure the problem - lots of lunges, squats, raises etc.

2. My fitness appeared OK - my VO2 numbers also (not that I know what that means!) The problem lies in the use of my energy systems. The graph for how I use fats was a little all over the place, which could be a problem during a long endurance race like an Ironman. The Coach reckons that based on the numbers I could run out of juice, probably during the run, and end up doing the 'Ironman shuffle' to the end. My fitness will probably get me over the line but it may not be the most pleasurable experience! The reason for this is likely to be based on my narrow range of training and going out on group rides where I have not focused on my zones and generally not had enough good long quality sessions at the right pace. Something the Coach will focus on in my training plan.

3. From the data my lactate threshold (the level my energy systems typically move from aerobic / anaerobic) is HR 150 bpm. The max HR calculated on the test I think was 167 bpm. From the lactate threshold numbers my training heart rate zones for biking were calculated as follows (a broader range than I was previously working to):

1. Recovery: 99-120
2. Aerobic: 121-134
3. Tempo: 135-141
4. Sub lactate threshold: 142-150
5. Super lactate threshold: 151-154
6. Aerobic Capacity: 155-159
7. Anaerobic Capacity: 160-165

I am looking forward to the next phase, which involves constructing a plan around this data and the confirmed weaknesses. I have long questionnaire to complete in relation to my current training / lifestyle to provide the Coach with all the information he needs to construct a suitable bespoke plan. The plan will get loaded to Training Peaks, probably the best and most respected on-line training tool - more on that later.