[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 30, 2020 at 2:42 pm · in reply to: Grip Strength #47676

I’m not sure strength is an issue here. It sounds like you may be over-gripping your tools.

First, for WI3, most of your weight will be on your feet. Tools will be used primarily for balance (to hold you into the wall). I would suggest doing some top rope technique sessions at a crag somewhere, hanging on to your tools as lightly as possible (thus the top rope).

Second, don’t squeeze. You need to grip an ice tool to swing it, but not to hang from it.

When hanging from an ice tool, your palm should not be touching the tool. If it does, then you’ll be fighting against biomechanics. Biomechanics always wins. In contrast, your fingers should be curled but your palm open and relaxed. There should be a straight line through your joints from your second knuckle down to your shoulder, just the same as if hanging off of a hangboard.

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 30, 2020 at 2:29 pm · in reply to: Fasting mimicking diet during a training cycle #47671

I don’t have the experience to say. The only thing that I can think of is that if you’re coming off of a macrocycle, fasting through a recovery week could make it pointless. You may want to extend the recovery for longer than two weeks.

Why do the fast in the first place?

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 30, 2020 at 2:25 pm · in reply to: Setting up metrics – which apps? #47667

As mentioned, I use Row for ski touring because I don’t row, and (as mentioned) the icon looks like skis. Likewise, I don’t swim, so I use Swim for resort skiing (the waves look like snow drifts).

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 30, 2020 at 2:03 pm · in reply to: Questions about training with power #47666

RECRUITMENT:

My comment on recruitment was just a guess.

When I’ve done lactate tests on a bike (as an infrequent and untrained cyclist), my threshold HRs are at least 20 beats lower than during a weight-bearing test.

This is likely due to less recruitment, and with less recruitment, there’s less central stress, so HR is lower. This is a common phenomenon; it’s not just me. I suspect the lower recruitment is because of both less activation (for everyone) and lower efficiency (for untrained cyclists). I wouldn’t be surprised if triathletes don’t see this effect as much.

So that made me wonder if rowing will show the opposite. Perhaps with greater recruitment (by using both upper and lower body) the central demand is greater, so HRs will be higher than purely weight-bearing activities. That’s just a guess though.

XC skiing would perhaps show a similar effect. And perhaps that’s why XC skiers show much higher VO2s than other sports (because their training is quadripedal and more demanding on the heart and lungs).

Maybe Scott J. has more thoughts on this.

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 30, 2020 at 1:53 pm · in reply to: Questions about training with power #47665

AeT/AnT DRIFT:

I should clarify. AnT HR is not a ceiling. But the highest sustainable effort for X minutes is a duration-dependent ceiling of sorts. Any time trial effort will have a maximum sustainable pace. As I understand it, that’s the basis of the critical power concept.

So that’s the dog. Heart rate is the tail. Whatever the duration, the highest sustainable output will elicit a certain heart rate. For a 30m time trial, that HR will be darn close to AnT HR.

Many times in this forum, have tried to do an AeT drift test and have gone too hard, often close to an AnT effort. So the HR that they see has little drift, and they wrongly assume that they are within their aerobic capacity.

In that case, I often say:

* AeT HR could drift higher but doesn’t; while
* AnT HR doesn’t drift higher, because it can’t.

Now I see how that could be confusing.

Bottom line: AnT HR is not a ceiling. The highest sustainable effort over X minutes is self-limiting and if the output is stable, so too will the heart rate.

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 27, 2020 at 9:21 am · in reply to: Potential for kayaking to undermine training #47473

@will-blum5: It may be helpful to compare this to biathlon. Different sports will have different demands, thresholds need to be measured separately, training needs to be done specifically. Metrics that apply to one won’t apply to the other.

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 27, 2020 at 9:17 am · in reply to: Questions about training with power #47472

Disclaimer: I’m not familiar with rowing training at all…

It reminds me of cycling, where HRs are normally lower for a given intensity due to less muscle mass being recruited. So cycling-hrTSS is usually less than TSS. Perhaps with rowing, it’s the opposite. If more muscle mass is recruited, then HRs would be higher for a given intensity so that rowing-hrTSS would score higher than TSS.

Either way, I would work off of power rather than HR. Power is the dog; HR is the tail.

Other than that, I think all of the usual caveats apply.

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 27, 2020 at 9:11 am · in reply to: 10 weeks into training my AeT is going down and I’m getting slower? #47471

@hikerobby: “Faster” at what? The duration of the event is always a factor. Being faster at shorter events doesn’t mean that that same person will be faster at longer. I’m not familiar with Cory’s experience, but that’s perhaps what happened. His training may have made him “faster” at longer durations.

@jdubus: Interesting… These look like good tests, so I would assume that overtraining or training at too-high an intensity is the culprit. Leg blasters, for example, will definitely reduce performance in the short-term. Also, I would avoid strength sessions for at least two days prior to a test. For an important event, I would avoid strength for at least ten days prior.

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 26, 2020 at 6:45 am · in reply to: Is the Data From My Heart Rate Drift Test Usable? #47409

Also:

* You need to warm up first. Your heart rate went from 109 to 173 in the first minute. That fast an increase will fire up your anaerobic system. Once it’s “awake”, it’s hard to get it to shut up. So it will influence the rest of the test.

* It’s hard to tell what HR you should target in your next test. However, when just starting out, the AeT test is pretty low-impact, so you can do it frequently and dial in the results.

* As Rachel said, it’s important to keep one variable within a narrow range. That can be pace if you’re on a treadmill or heart rate if you’re on a flat track.

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 25, 2020 at 6:32 am · in reply to: What is constant heart rate and gently rolling hills #47289

Seems simpler to do a session at a constant speed and press the Lap button on your watch at 15m (after the warm up) and at 45m (after the first 30′ lap), then stop at 1h15m. You can then compare the averages between the two 30m laps in TP for free.

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 25, 2020 at 6:26 am · in reply to: Lactate test – AeT seems too high #47288

One other thing to consider is the length of the test. Fourteen 5-minutes stages is a long test. So the low levels of lactate at high HRs could come from some glycogen depletion, especially if you were fasted prior to the test.

In your next test, I would do a gradual warm-up of ~20′ up to about 145 and then test every 3′ rather than 5′. Up to AeT, lactate usually plateaus after ~2′.

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 23, 2020 at 5:27 am · in reply to: vertical vs. horizontal distance in macro cycle #47200

P.S. Your November 15th message is the last one that is in this thread.

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 23, 2020 at 5:26 am · in reply to: vertical vs. horizontal distance in macro cycle #47199

Due to variations in your local terrain, distance and elevation gain will never go according to any plan. The plan is intended as a rough guide to see what a possible macrocycle would look like. You’ll need to adjust it (as you’ve done) for your particular circumstance.

If you want to retest (AeT or AnT) then the end of a recovery week is a good time to do so. However, know that similar to training sessions, frequent tests may or may not show continuous improvement. Usually, improvement fluctuates with a general upward trend over the long-term.

If a base session feels like something you could do day after day, then it’s a good sign that it is the right intensity and duration.

You don’t have to avoid gain entirely during a recovery week. Go by how you feel. If your legs need a break, then minimize the gain. If they’re fresh, then add some.

I can’t remember if the free TP account calculates drift, and I’m not familiar with the Garmin app, but neither is necessary.

During a drift test on a FLAT course, warm up gradually for at least 15 minutes until your HR stabilizes at what you think is AeT HR. Then hold that pace for 60′. Press the lap button halfway through. So when you’re done, you’ll have one 15′ lap for the warm-up and two 30′ laps for the test.

If the average HR in the 30′ laps is within five(ish) beats, then you can compare the average pace. Divide the average pace of the second lap by the average pace of the first. Likely the second half will be slower. If the pace drops off by less than 5%, then the pace and HR should be near AeT.

Unlike an AnT test, an AeT drift test will feel much easier for most people. So feel free to test it more frequently.

Aerobic Self-Assessment for Mountain Athletes

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 20, 2020 at 10:16 am · in reply to: 30/30s and max HR determination #47115

Never assume more is better because… it’s usually worse.

Cases in point:

* If you were to ignore HR and use a typical “VO2” pace instead (in many cases, ~120% of AnT pace), you would see that HR won’t rise to AnT HR until several reps into the workout. And the fitter you are the later this will happen, not the sooner. HR is a poor measure of intensity above AeT, so don’t wag the dog… As Sam said, use a constant intensity and let HR gradually catch up to AnT HR over the first several intervals.

* Don’t combine 30-30s and ME. The former is primarily a central stimulus; the latter, peripheral. If done correctly, most of the load of the former will be on the heart and lungs; the latter, on the legs. So the perceived exertion in the legs of 30-30s won’t be too bad unless your legs are weak. For ME, measures of central exertion (ventilation and HR) won’t be extreme, probably quite the opposite (in Zone 1/2).

[Scott Semple]

Scott Semple on November 2, 2020 at 9:54 am · in reply to: 10 weeks into training my AeT is going down and I’m getting slower? #46467

Also, you’re assuming your first test was correct. What if it wasn’t? If it was loaded into Training Peaks, you can share a public link to it here and we can take a look.

The worst ADS I’ve seen—from a long-term diet of high-intensity—was 40%. So don’t rule out that your starting AeT may have been lower if that first test wasn’t correct.