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Incorporating Benchmark Testing Into Your Training Plan


Test – just the word alone makes most athletes a little queasy; however, without testing ourselves on a regular basis how do we know we are getting faster, stronger or more efficient?


Performance testing can be incorporated into training plans in two ways: in a laboratory setting or field testing environment. A laboratory setting, typically will involve blood lactate sampling, VO2 max analysis and often a pedal, gait and/or stroke analysis. While a field test will involve a time trial or race simulation around your everyday training grounds. Ultimately, the goal of both test settings is the same – establish your lactate threshold power, pace and/or heart rate and to identify performance gains throughout your training and racing season.


A swimming field test is used to establish goal paces for swim training and race- day performance. Heart rate can be used; however, pacing in the water provides more consistent feedback and is adequate to establish a lactate threshold swim pace for a sprint distance up to Iron-distance events. The test I use is a 400-meter/yard time trial, followed by a 100-meter/yard sprint. The 400/100 format of the swimming field test is mainly designed to both establish goal paces for your training sessions, evaluate your swimming technique and aerobic capability to your swimming speed and to see performance gains of swimming faster. A 400-meter/yard swim will take a relatively slower swimmer about 8 minutes and a faster swimmer about 4 minutes. However, during the 100-meter/yard sprint, a more technically proficient swimmer will be able to swim considerably swim faster than their average 100-meter/yard split during the 400-meter/ yard portion of the test. This indicates that technique may be more of a limiting factor rather than your aerobic engine. Cycling and running field tests are used as well to establish power, pace and heart rate at lactate threshold and to create training ranges. The cycling and running field test we use at Carmichael Training Systems is 2x8-minute time-trial efforts. We use the 2x8-minute test to evaluate power and pacing, overall fitness and the ability to recovery and repeat intervals at threshold power or pace. I often see a drop-off power and pace during the second time trial effort;


BIKE TEST


By Lindsay Hyman USA Triathlon Level II Certified Coach


RUN TEST


as an athlete’s aerobic and lactate threshold engines improve the second time trial effort will become within 5 percent (power or pace) of the initial interval, which indicates that his or her capacity to perform at lactate threshold is improving. If the second time trial effort has significantly more power or is faster compared to the first, than an enhanced power or pacing plan may need to be set into place for future training and racing.


The two graphs shown above are examples of a running and cycling field test. During the first 8-minute interval the power drops off, starting at 385 watts and finishing around 335 watts. During the second 8-minute interval, the athlete approached the time-trial effort in a more conservative fashion starting at 345 watts and was able to maintain a more consistent power output throughout the 8-minute interval. When


PERFORMANCECOACHING | page 3 (continued on next page)


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