[Adam Quinn]

Im am nearing my goal week of The Uphill Athlete CAT 1 1st Time 50km race plan.

I am at the end of the 1st week of taper week18 (56km) and have found that Im having to run 30 seconds per kilometer slower than two weeks ago to stay in Z1 and easily getting into zone two on minor uphills.

I did have a quite intense Event Specific weekend last week with two back to back long days;
– Day 1 I stayed in Zone 2 completing 16km and 1300m elevation gain , carrying 15kg on the uphill.
– Day 2 I did 28.5km and 1900m elevation gain with time more time in zone 3 than i should have spent.

Im considering not doing the remaining planned distance of this week (23km z1) to allow more recovery or do i push through just at the slower pace or walking?

Is this just a result of fatigue from two heavy back to back specificity weeks of 77km and 85km ? or is this an early sign of being over trained and should I back off?

Thanks

Adam

Topic

[Anonymous]

Anonymous on October 31, 2020 at 7:55 am #46427

Adam:

A high Hr during a taper period is to be expected. You are getting rested and your sympathetic nervous system is on high alert. As we have said several times: HR is an imperfect proxy for effort. Unfortunately it is the best one we mountain athletes have.

ARE YOU TIRED during and after these Z1-2 hikes?

Rule:
High HR with Low Effort means you are very fit, rest and ready to perform very well.

Low HR with High Effort is s sign of fatigue and can be a normal part of the training process but you should not expect god performance.

Probably this high HR now is an indication that you need to recalibrate your zones. No doubt your AeT and AnT are higher then when you started this process.

Scott

[Adam Quinn]

Adam Quinn on October 31, 2020 at 12:53 pm #46434

Hi Scott,

Thanks for your reply! Didn’t expect to hear from the man himself!

To answer your question I am not tired after these Z1 & Z2 workouts, my legs feel in pretty good shape with the exception of them feeling a bit heavier on the 1st training day following a big weekend. However I was taking the higher HR to be an indication that I was in fact too fatigued and needed more rest as I am consciously having to go at a slower pace to remain in a strict Z1 HR.

Great info, I shall recalibrate this weekend.

Many Thanks, Love the podcast!

Best

Adam