Testing

Following on from yesterday's post about recalibrating training zones I thought it would be good to write a post about just how I like to do that.

Well a couple of ways. The first and simplest way is to use the estimate of threshold and the associated training zones that your Garmin gives you. Now I am not sure of the algorithms behind these, but I am inclined to think Garmin has a fair notion of what they are doing. Still, without doing proper testing I tend to think of these training zones as estimates.

If you want to go a step beyond these estimated zones then the answer is simple. Testing.

Done right testing can give a great idea of potential outputs, particularly threshold, and from here it is just a case of figuring out your zones. Simple

So if it just a case of testing, what tests do I like?

Well, I tend to fall back on the tests I am familiar with and that have worked for me. This doesn't mean these tests are the best ones, but I do know they tend to work. The tests I use are the SwimSmooth CSS test for swimming, the FTP test for riding and the Critical Velocity Test or Cooper's Test for running. The ins and outs of these various tests can all be found on your friend Google.

All these tests have one thing in common they are a shorter duration test that you then use the results of to extrapolate your performance over a longer period and hence figure out your threshold.

In the CSS test you swim a best effort 400m and 200m effort you then use this calculator to get your CSS.

CSS Calculator

Once you have your CSS it is a great tool to figure out your pace zones for various types of swimming, such as threshold, tempo and steady and well as plan race pace over various distances. Obviously a CSS test won't give you heart rate zones unless you have a fancy Garmin Swim Heart Rate monitor or equivalent, but then again I don't know too many people who monitor HR during the swim leg of a triathlon, so in this case pace is probably more useful anyway.

For cycling obviously the go to is the Functional Threshold Power Test (FTP). An FTP test is a 20 minute max effort piece from which you take your average power and multiply it by 95% to get your FTP. Once you calculate your FTP you can then use it for fun things like prescribing intensity levels during training, figuring out race paces etc.

However, what do you do if you don't have a power meter? Well I find that the HR data from an FTP test also gives a pretty good estimate of threshold HR. If you look at the HR profile of an FTP test you will see that the HR climbs steadily until a point and then it tends to plateau. I use this plateau as an estimate of threshold HR. It may not be 100% right, but it usually gives a good starting point which you can tweak with experience. Once you have your threshold HR you can then use a training zone model such as the one built into Garmin or TrainingPeaks to figure out your zones. Noice.

The approach for running is similar to an FTP test. At Front Runner we use either the Critical Velocity Test (CVT) or a Coopers test depending on a runner's background, fitness and experience. A CVT is a 30 minute test where a person tries to cover as much distance as possible, a Coopers test is a 12 minute version of that. A CVT usually gives slightly more accurate results but they are harder to pace well and put a more load on the body, so for newer runners or returning runners we tend to go with a Coopers Test. Once you have the results from the test you put it into a CVT or Coopers Test Calculator like this one:

Pace Zone Calculator

Just like the FTP test the outputs of these tests give an estimate of threshold pace which is then used to calculate your training zones. I also use the HR data from a CVT test to estimate threshold HR, however, I find Coopers tests can be a bit short to give an accurate estimate (you can go pretty hard in a 12 minute test). However, we find that for most of our athletes, pace is a more useful metric during running anyway so we tend to go that way more often.

And there you go, that is how I go about determining my correct intensity zones.

Oh yeah, for sports that aren't swimming, biking and running I use an equivalent version of the CVT. Basically a best pace 30 minute effort, I find it also tends to give a reasonably accurate estimate of threshold HR for other sports too.