Had a terrible TT today. Wanted to ask something...

mpalios

Folks, I had a complete face plant today in my TT.  I ate too much for lunch and I think it completely torpedoed my afternoon.  I got to 27 minutes, and had to bail, as I thought I was going to vomit my burrito.  So, two questions.....

1) My HR was WAY elevated for this effort for the 27 minutes I was going.  (was 154 in old TT, was 160 for today's terrible effort).  Speed for the effort today was SLIGHTLY higher than before.  Do I use the HR from tonight, or stick with the old one?

2) Should I consider re-doing the TT on Saturday in place of the long ride?  I know that the coaches say to not re-do workouts, but didn't know if a 40' TT would count.  What do you guys think?

Thanks.

dhalligan

Mike,

HR can be so subjective.  You could have been dehydrated, coming down with something, tired/fatigued, or just too much burrito digesting going on.

Have you been riding or are you coming back from time off?  Is your fitness level much different from the last time you tested?

Are you starting the Jan OS or are you in Oct or Nov?

If it were me, I'd chalk it up as a bad test.  Let it go and focus and being well rested and hydrated for the 5K run test.  Then on thurs, follow the bike plan with an HR between this test and your last test.  As the OS progresses and you feel spunky, do another test just to complete the total time.  I've had failed tests in the past and done an impromptu test during a workout when I least expected it.

Good luck,

Dave

mpalios

Dave, I'm in the Oct. OS and the VO2 workouts (the 2.30 on/off) have been going really well.  I was excited to do this test, but I knew I was in trouble at 2' into the test.  Legs felt crappy.  Surprised and disappointed, but not too concerned.  Just a little bummed out.

gregp909

 @Dave is right. . .heart rate can differ based on a lot of different factors.  And HRs are definitely specific to an individual based on their own physiology.  My avg HR during this test was 176.  That was a little high for me too but I was able to complete the work so I didn't worry; and I will use the new higher HR for my zones and then adjust accordingly if I feel it is sets them too high.  Work is Speed.

FWIW. . .my brother-in-law's Cal State Fullerton tri coach has them do this exact same bike LTHR test except it is only 30 minutes long.  So your test might still be valid.

mgraffeo

Mike, just chalk it up to a bad day, and forget about it. Keep up with the zones you've been using, or tweak them slightly, but use perceived effort as your guide. Whatever you do, don't let a bad test make you question whether or not you are getting fitter.

mpalios

Posted By Mike Graffeo on 03 Jan 2011 09:49 PM

Mike, just chalk it up to a bad day, and forget about it. Keep up with the zones you've been using, or tweak them slightly, but use perceived effort as your guide. Whatever you do, don't let a bad test make you question whether or not you are getting fitter.

 

No questions on if I'm getting fitter at all...I know I am.  Just disappointed I couldn't see it yesterday.

Would you repeat the test on Saturday, in place of my hard/long bike workout?  It's a 6x2'30" @ ;Z5 followed by a run.

mpalios

And once again, the Run TT, which I was REALLY looking forward to...VDot improves 1 point (to 48, from 47).  30" less than last TT.  Not bad, but honestly was expecting much better.  Not disappointed with effort, disappointed with results.  Unsure what is going on right now....

I base this on my last hard run, a 3x1M with 3-4' RI.  6.30, 6.25, 6.20 in that workout.  Then I struggle to maintain 6.39.  Been running for nearly 20 years and never been this frustrated.  Probably need to adjust my internal expectations.....

Linda Patch

Adjusting internal expectations is difficult, and it might be nothing more than a slower personal timeline for things to kick in in a BIG way. Not everyone's progression in the same. My first OS--everyone was getting these whopping % increases, and I would go up only ~3 watts every test. But I kept progressing and adding to the bank all the way through August of that year (I was doing IMFL). I sure did get faster, and that's all that counts in the end.

And one additional voice about re-testing...don't. Keep working your zones, keep the intervals workouts going consistently--far more valuable. The test is just a test, and it can wait until next time. Keep the faith. It is happening.

jburbatt

Re: the vdot test- don't forget that if you come from a running background and your paces are already pretty fast the gains you see likely won't be as drastic as you'd see on the bike. Even 1 vdot is good, and it sounds like you might be just having an off week. Unless you start doing the workouts next week and find them ridiculously easy I wouldn't worry about retesting. As Mike said, you can always minimally tweak the numbers if it seems just a little too easy. Don't worry about it, especially with HR, we all have off-tests!

mpalios

I know you all are right. My problem is two-fold:
1) I expect to be as fast as I was 5 years ago with 3 months of fast training (after almost no fast training). And 5 eyars ago, I was fast. So, el stupido.
2) I expect my gains from the last 2-3 months of going fast to be much more dramatic based on my history. El stupido, #2.

The other thing is that my AAA race on February 26 is a 15K. Goal of sub-60 is looking a bit hairy right now, but I'm going to keep plugging away. I think realistically, my v-Dot needs to be around a 50-51 to hit that number.

But I think if I keep training fast, it will be very close. Very close.

I wonder if "under the lights" (ie, actual 5K race, with adrenaline, competition, etc.) the numbers would be different/faster. probably. I think.

PS - much nicer having this discussion here than other tri boards where turds left and right insert their opinions.