Welcome to week number two of the blog!

This weekend was great for riding. I was a little anxious when I woke up on Saturday and realized it was going to be a very sunny day, and that I would have an awesome bike ride ahead… Except that I was scheduled to take a blood lactate test that morning with the Ironcops program…. So, I had to reschedule my bike ride for Sunday…

The blood lactate test was at the Kintec Sports Lab in Surrey. They are sponsoring the Ironcops this year and are offering to donate 5% of every purchase to the Cops for Cancer program. All you have to do is mention “Ironcops” and the donation is automatic. So, check them out and buy some shoes! They do quite a professional foot strike analysis as well in order to fit you.

The blood lactate test is used to help set levels of training that I should be aiming for in order to maximize my improvement. Lactate measurement is far more precise than the outdated and inaccurate method of using percentages of maximum heart rate to set training zones. Because heart rate is an individual response, heart rate training zones need to be determined by measurement of physiological variables not set by mathematical formulas.

I will be getting this test back next week and then I will post it and reveal what it says about my training levels. I am also going to go back in July and get retested to see if I have improved.

I have not done a blood lactate test before but I have done a VO2 max test on a treadmill (running) and received some valuable information about myself. First of all, I learned a closer approximation of my maximum heart rate. During the treadmill test, I was able to get my heart rate up to roughly 203 beats per minute. There is really no way I could have known that this is how high it could go without actually getting to that level.

Now, knowing my maximum is really irrelevant, because there are few times that I will ever attempt to get to that level in a workout. But, the next area that I discovered was the heart rate level where I went from aerobic to anaerobic while running. And that number is around 180. Theoretically speaking, I should be able to hold a 180 heart rate and still be “aerobic”, and, with proper training, be able to hold that for as long as a marathon even if I really could. Now, theory and practice are two different things.

So that was my weekend. My training schedule for last week:
Monday - boxing & spinning (45 minutes)
Tuesday - swimming (2k) & 40 min run.
Wednesday - spin 30 minutes
Thursday - run 3x1 mile repeats at 6:10/mile, 1.5 hrs yoga Friday - 40 minute tempo (approx 9k) in morning, swim afternoon (1200 meters) Saturday - Blood lactate test (bike). Approximately 45 min of riding. Swim technique class with Dean.
Sunday - Bike 3.5 hours. Not sure of distance. Easy ride. 1.5 hrs Yoga in afternoon

There are two yoga’s and one boxing session. I have decided as I get older that I need to stretch more, and I am horribly undisciplined in this area. So, the yoga classes are becoming part of my training program. And the boxing? Well, I just use that to get rid of aggression… No, actually, it substitutes a weight workout and also is really good for mental focus and concentration. Plus, I think there is a certain level of confidence that you get from it.