Tag: Lactate

Monday: easy 80 – 4 x 20′ / 1′ rest

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I did not sleep well last night.  I often have troubles on Sunday nights because I sleep in a bit on the weekend, but last night it was more related to the Half Marathon in the afternoon.  I was totally wiped, but had trouble getting restful sleep.  I guess it’s related to muscle soreness but I think there is another element to it.

I’m curious if other people have trouble sleeping the night after a really hard session?

This morning, it hurt to get out of bed.  I was sore all over.  My ass was particularly tender, but my shoulders and legs were stiff too.  I decided that recovery was what I needed today, and so I decided on a very gentle session.

Plan:

  1. 4 x 20′ / 1′ rest
  2. first 20′, 5′ @ 150W, 5′ @ 160W, 5′ @ 170W, 5′ @ 180W
  3. after that, gentle pace variations between 170 and 190W
  4. HR cap at 145 (top of UT2)

12-7Screen Shot 2015-12-07 at 9.48.53 AM

Mission accomplished.  I did 2′ chunks of 170W/190W for the second 20′.  Then in third I did 2′ chunks at 170/180/190/180/170/170/180/190/180/170. At the end of the 3rd piece I measured lacate –> 1.9 mmol/l.  Surprisingly high for the low RPE and low HR.

I liked that one so I did it again in the 4th piece.
Measured lactate –> 1.8mmol/l

Tomorrow:  I think I will probably take a shot at this months CTC.
It is 8 x 750 / 1′ rest.  This is similar to the 3’/1′ session that did last week, but fewer reps and a bit shorter.  I think I will start off at 1:47 pace and see where that gets me.

Monday: 3 x 20’/1′ rest

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Temp: 68F

Humidity: 38%

Plan:

  1. 4 x 20′ / 1′ rest
  2. slow start: 150W/175W, 5′ each
  3. 190W for the rest
  4. Stroke rate <= 22spm
  5. On slides

I ended up stopping after 3 because I was out of time.  Other than that, a pretty standard workout.  I was a little tired from the HM that I did yesterday evening (about 12 hours of rest), and I didn’t sleep all that well.

I’ve been seeing some funny lactate readings lately.  On Saturday, I was barely breaking a sweat, but my first lactate reading was 2.8.  So I redid the test and measured 1.6.  Today, again, my first test was 2.8.  So I did a second test and read 1.3.  I think I must be getting too lax in my sweat wiping processes.

To try to get this a bit more under control, for the next week or so, I think I will routinely do 2 tests after 60 minutes to look at the variation in readings.  I’ll also try to be a bit more fastidious in my procedures.

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I will try to do a quick 30 minute steady state session this evening.

Tomorrow morning:  4 x 5K / 2′ rest.  Pace target: 1:52

Saturday: 4 x 20′ / 1’r

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Friday: Rest Day

Saturday: steady state.

False start.  Did 5′ at 2:15 and then my HR strap stopped working.  Quick stop to replace the battery, then went on from there.

Measure lactate at 60′ –> 1.6 mmol/l

After that I decided to push the pace down to 2:00/500 to see if my HR stayed nice and low.  It did.

Screen Shot 2015-11-28 at 8.33.43 PMScreen Shot 2015-11-28 at 8.33.22 PM

Workout Summary – Nov 28, 2015
–_|_Total_|_-Total-_|_–Avg–_|_-Avg-_|_Avg-_|_-Avg-_|_–Avg–_|_-Avg_|_-Avg
–_|_Dist-_|_-Time–_|_-Pace–_|_Watts_|_SPM-_|_-HR–_|_-%HRR–_|_-DPS_|_-SPI
–_|_19639_|_80:00.0_|_02:02.2_|_191.8_|_19.4_|_133.3_|_ 63.3% _|_12.6_|_09.9
Workout Details
#-_|_SDist_|_-Split-_|_-SPace-_|_Watts_|_SPM-_|_AvgHR_|_Avg%HRR_|_DPS-_|_-SPI

01_|_01162_|_05:00.0_|_02:09.0_|_162.9_|_17.6_|_112.8_|_ 48.8% _|_13.2_|_09.3
02_|_03676_|_15:00.0_|_02:02.4_|_190.8_|_19.3_|_129.5_|_ 60.6% _|_12.7_|_09.9
03_|_04903_|_20:00.0_|_02:02.4_|_191.0_|_19.3_|_133.9_|_ 63.8% _|_12.7_|_09.9
04_|_04896_|_20:00.0_|_02:02.5_|_190.2_|_19.1_|_134.5_|_ 64.2% _|_12.9_|_10.0
05_|_05001_|_20:00.0_|_02:00.0_|_202.7_|_20.5_|_138.8_|_ 67.2% _|_12.2_|_09.9

Tomorrow: HM, target pace 1:58.

 

Wednesday: 4 x 20/1’rest

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I must admit, I was a little spooked when went to go sit on the erg.  I was so far below my expectations yesterday for the 60′ workout that I didn’t have a lot of confidence that even today’s easy endurance session would go well.

But, after all, it was just an easy session.  So, I got myself settled in and did it.  I’m off work today (tomorrow is Thanksgiving), so this was at home on my static erg.  Target pace was 2:03.  Standard slow start.  Heart rate and RPE were much higher than similar sessions.  Lactate reading was high, but not ridiculous (2.5mmol/l).  HR drift from 40′ to 80′ was 1%.

So, not a sublime aerobic adventure, but a reasonable workout.

Screen Shot 2015-11-25 at 10.47.15 AMScreen Shot 2015-11-25 at 10.46.59 AM

Workout Summary – Nov 25, 2015
–_|_Total_|_-Total-_|_–Avg–_|_-Avg-_|_Avg-_|_-Avg-_|_–Avg–_|_-Avg_|_-Avg
–_|_Dist-_|_-Time–_|_-Pace–_|_Watts_|_SPM-_|_-HR–_|_-%HRR–_|_-DPS_|_-SPI
–_|_19399_|_80:00.0_|_02:03.7_|_184.8_|_19.0_|_141.6_|_ 69.2% _|_12.8_|_09.7
Workout Details
#-_|_SDist_|_-Split-_|_-SPace-_|_Watts_|_SPM-_|_AvgHR_|_Avg%HRR_|_DPS-_|_-SPI

01_|_01119_|_05:00.0_|_02:14.1_|_145.3_|_16.0_|_099.0_|_ 39.0% _|_14.0_|_09.1
02_|_01164_|_05:00.0_|_02:08.9_|_163.6_|_17.2_|_120.9_|_ 54.6% _|_13.5_|_09.5
03_|_02444_|_10:00.0_|_02:02.8_|_189.2_|_19.0_|_136.3_|_ 65.5% _|_12.9_|_10.0
04_|_04892_|_20:00.0_|_02:02.7_|_189.7_|_19.0_|_143.6_|_ 70.6% _|_12.9_|_10.0
05_|_04885_|_20:00.0_|_02:02.8_|_188.9_|_19.3_|_148.8_|_ 74.4% _|_12.7_|_09.8
06_|_04895_|_20:00.0_|_02:02.6_|_190.1_|_19.9_|_148.4_|_ 74.1% _|_12.3_|_09.6

Tomorrow:  Training Plan calls for a HM, but I don’t think I have that much time, I might do another try at an hour at 1:58.

Saturday: 4 x 30 / 1′ rest

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I didn’t get a chance to row yesterday after I got back from Dallas.  So, I ended up with 2 rest days in a row.  That doesn’t happen very often.  Being that well rested made me want to push the endurance stuff more.

I toyed with the idea of a Marathon, but the idea of doing it but not aiming at a PB seemed disappointing somehow, and my 2.0 mmol power is definitely lower than when I did my last marathon PB.  So, I dialed it back to a two hour row instead.

Plan:

  1. 4 x 30′ / 1′ rest
  2. pace target: 2:03
  3. rate target: 19
  4. slow start: 5′ at 2:15, 5′ at 2:10

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Screen Shot 2015-11-21 at 4.56.11 PM

Workout Summary – Nov 21, 2015
–_|_Total_|_-Total-_|_–Avg–_|_-Avg-_|_Avg-_|_-Avg-_|_–Avg–_|_-Avg_|_-Avg
–_|_Dist-_|_-Time–_|_-Pace–_|_Watts_|_SPM-_|_-HR–_|_-%HRR–_|_-DPS_|_-SPI
–_|_29231_|_120:00.0_|_02:03.2_|_187.4_|_19.4_|_135.5_|_ 64.9% _|_12.6_|_09.7
Workout Details
#-_|_SDist_|_-Split-_|_-SPace-_|_Watts_|_SPM-_|_AvgHR_|_Avg%HRR_|_DPS-_|_-SPI

01_|_01123_|_05:00.0_|_02:13.6_|_146.8_|_16.4_|_108.6_|_ 45.8% _|_13.7_|_08.9
02_|_01164_|_05:00.0_|_02:08.8_|_163.6_|_17.8_|_123.1_|_ 56.1% _|_13.1_|_09.2
03_|_04888_|_20:00.0_|_02:02.7_|_189.2_|_19.5_|_133.1_|_ 63.2% _|_12.5_|_09.7
04_|_07336_|_30:00.0_|_02:02.7_|_189.5_|_19.4_|_137.9_|_ 66.6% _|_12.6_|_09.8
05_|_07326_|_30:00.0_|_02:02.8_|_188.8_|_19.7_|_137.0_|_ 66.0% _|_12.4_|_09.6
06_|_02448_|_10:00.0_|_02:02.5_|_190.2_|_19.6_|_136.6_|_ 65.7% _|_12.5_|_09.7
07_|_04946_|_20:00.0_|_02:01.3_|_196.1_|_19.9_|_139.8_|_ 68.0% _|_12.5_|_09.9

I stuck to 2:03 like glue through the first 3 pieces.  After 10 minutes in the last 30′ piece, I wanted to see what would happen with my HR if I boosted the power just a little, from 189 to 195 watts, a little more than a second off the pace.  The answer was that nothing happened to my HR.

I measured lactate at 60′.  It was exactly 2.0mmol/l.

I had very little HR drift today, even over the whole 120 minutes.

Tomorrow:  With thanksgiving week, I am probably going to miss a couple of days, so I think I might get a jump on the first mesocycle.  This one is working on long distance rows.  The session I have planned for Tuesday is 4 x 15’/2′ rest at 95% of LT power, which is 267W (1:49).  This seems a tad ambitious, so I think I will dial it back to 250W (1:52).

 

Aerobic and Anaerobic thresholds

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There is a nifty table in chapter 6 of Rowing Faster which provides targets for aerobic threshold (AeT) and Anaerobic Threshold (AnT) for different classes of rowers.

Screen Shot 2015-11-18 at 4.01.40 PM

Since I have these wattages from my recents tests, I thought I’d look at how I stacked up.

I weight about 195lbs (88KG).  So, in watts per Kg, my results were:

  • AeT : 2.16 W/kg
  • AnT : 3.20 W/kg

So, this lines up with my other tests, that my AnT is “better” than my AeT, and I should work to develop my aerobic base.

 

Wednesday: 4 x 20′ / 1′ rest

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Base building week continues.  So, another aerobic endurance session.  Today, I had the time and energy to do the full 80 minute session.

I made a couple of tiny adjustments to reduce intensity because yesterday’s reading was so high, but they were more window dressing than real change.  First thing was I went back to looking at pace instead of watts.  The pace impact of that was only a couple tenths of a second during the main part of the session, but it also slowed down my 10 minute built in warmup.  I think it also changed things up enough that I stopped thinking about hitting magic watts numbers and relaxed a bit.

Plan:

  1. 4 x 20 / 1′ rest
  2. 10′ warm up at 2:15, then 2:10, then target
  3. pace target: 2:03 (189W)
  4. rate target: 22
  5. On slides

Screen Shot 2015-11-18 at 12.35.07 PM

11-18

So, today, at virtually the same power and rate as yesterday, my HR drift was lower, and my lactates were back in target range.  I’m guessing that the fatigue from Sunday’s 6K is finally out of my system.

The abnormally long rest between the 3rd and 4th pieces was a quick work phone call that I needed to take.

I think I will do a bonus 30 or 40 minutes steady state this afternoon.  Tomorrow morning, I am flying off to Dallas on business.  So thursday will be a rest day.  I fly home on Friday, so I might be able to get in a short session Friday evening once I am home.

Tuesday: 3 x 20′ / 1′ rest

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Feeling kind of tired this morning.  I guess lack of rest is starting to catch up with me.

Plan:

  1. 4×20′ / 1′ rest
  2. slow start 150W/175W/190W
  3. on slides
  4. 20-22 spm

Screen Shot 2015-11-17 at 8.51.26 AM

11-17

HR just kept climbing today, and lactate reading was off the chart too.  RPE was very high.  I felt like I was working very hard.

I’m going to back off another 5 watts or so on steady state power for now.

I am scheduled for a second session this afternoon.  I think extra rest might be beneficial instead.  Tomorrow morning is another endurance session.

Autumn Test Results

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So, with the 6K test I did yesterday, I completed my first thorough fitness assessment.  The tests that I did were:

  • 2 speed lactate test
  • 1 minute peak power test
  • 2K test
  • 6K test

Results

11-10 2-speed

The 2-speed test doesn’t tell anything now.  It is something that can be repeated easily to measure progress over time.

For the other tests:

test results

The first take away from these tests is that I have a bigger gap between aerobic threshold and VO2Max.  Basically, this means that my 2K is faster than “should” be based on my aerobic threshold power.  I’m guessing that this means that my lactate tolerance is higher than some and allows me to overachieve on the 2K.  The diagnosis is that I should build a better aerobic base.

The second take away is that the ratio between my V02Max (2K power) and my anaerobic threshold (6K power), is very small.  In terms of pace, my 2K pace was 1:42.6.  My 6K pace was 1:47.5.  That’s a difference of 4.9 seconds.  In general, for heavyweights, the rule of thumb is 5 seconds slower pace when you double the distance (Paul’s law).  If you plug in my 6K pace, the predicted 2K pace is 1:39.5, about 3 splits faster!  So, the take away from this for me is that my 2K is pretty damn slow.

Now consider the VO2Max to 30 sec avg power.  My ratio is much higher than the “Ideal”, essentially meaning that my peak power is low relative to my VO2Max.  So, even though my 2K is slow, if I was to use peak power as a predictor it should be slower still!  This again points to me leaning more heavily on lactate tolerance than anaerobic power to get through the 2K distance

In essence, none of this should be surprising.  I designed a training plan to focus on head racing.  I wanted to optimize my performance at the 5K to 6K distance, and it looks like that is what happened.  In retrospect, I would have done better if I had been able to maintain and build my aerobic base, but the deficits in peak power are entirely expected and entirely fine with me.

So, how do these results impact my training plan?  Honestly, not much.  I already suspected that my aerobic base was weak from the lame ass 2.0mmol steady powers that I could hold, and I baked a higher amount of endurance into the plan for that reason.  I also had baked in a training block with a lot of peak power work in the last month before 2K competition since I know that those gains are temporary and tough to maintain without killing my aerobic base.

The interesting part of this (at least to me) is to see what happens when I do the test block after the Crash-Bs to see if what I’m planning to do actually works.  The other thing that the testing gives me is a clue about what to do next summer to get ready for head racing season.  My thought now is to replace one high intensity session per week with more endurance training.  I’ll have to think some more in terms of a block periodization strategy.

 

 

Monday: 3 x 20’/1′ rest

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Plan:

  1.  3 x 20′ / 1′ rest
  2. slow start, 5′ at 150W, 5′ at 175W, then 190W the rest of the way.
  3. rate:  22 (on slides)

Screen Shot 2015-11-16 at 9.24.16 AM

11-16

Tired legs from yesterday’s exhertions.  Also a warmer room and wearing a shirt meant that I was a lot sweatier, and my HR was higher.  I pulled the power down by 3 watts, and the lactates were 0.2 lower than Saturday, despite the higher RPE and HR.

lac table

This is a base building / transition week, so I’ll be sticking to endurance sessions.  Tomorrow is 4 x 20’/1′.  The plan calls for an afternoon session (30′ UT2), but I’m not sure if I can fit it in around work commitments.