[todd.struble]

I’m 38m, entering my third year of structured training, and coming from an ADS background so I just set my AnT at a Training Peaks recommended 170 and figured it was good enough while I focused on aerobic volume. My AeT HR has leveled out around 155-160; my most recent test I did a few days ago at 155 and that felt comfortable, so I thought it was time to test my AnT.

Following the DIY protocol for a self-identified “less-fit” athlete and because the hill outside my house isn’t large enough to go uphill for more than 30 minutes, I did a 30 minute time trial, and hit an average HR of 186, putting my AeT still well below the 10% test. I felt like there’s no way I could have sustained that effort for another 30 minutes and I suppose it’s common sense to think that if I did a 1 hour time trial I would have needed to pace at a lower HR.

I’m curious if we’re on the margins of ADS is the 30 minute time trial a useful number or should I retest at 45 minutes or 60 minutes? Or is this a good number and I should still shy away from adding intensity and keep trying to get my AeT HR up more?

Also, finally, how good is the Training Peaks suggestion for the AnT number? After this effort, I got a notification suggesting a threshold number of 180 – lower than my tested number but still higher than I’d wager I could sustain for an hour. Just curious if that number is worth anything!

Topic

[Dada]

Dada on September 6, 2020 at 3:07 am #44778

Also interested

[Anonymous]

Anonymous on September 6, 2020 at 11:19 am #44785

Todd:

The reason I have suggested 30 min for the less fit is that it is possible that local muscular fatigue will set in earlier in in athletes with lower muscular endurance. They will be forced to slow down considerably in longer tests and HR can drop dramatically during this slowing. The fact that you can sustain 180+ for 30 min is definitely an indication that the TP recommended AnT of 170 was way off. When you are next pretty rested try 45 min and see how much the average drops. I normally only recommend 60 min AnT tests for very fit athletes.

While I think the TP data crunching can suggest AnT, I feel the AnT test is a better indicator.

Remember that both these thresholds will move around depending on recovery state.

Let us know your results.

Scott

[todd.struble]

todd.struble on August 30, 2021 at 4:40 pm #56655

A year later… life got in the way of continued structured training with a move and family health issues. However, I did want to report back on this topic after getting back to a similar fitness level and “re-testing.”

I ended up signing up for an event to test my AnT again – what better way to do a time trial than race for an hour? I signed up for the US National Mountain Running Championship at my local ski hill, a 6 mile, 1.7k elevation up/down race. The up/down nature of it probably isn’t ideal for a test like this, but after a 57:47 effort… my average heartrate was 185, one beat less than my 30 minute trial a year ago. Interestingly, my effort to the top of the course (~40 minutes) also had an average heart rate of 185.

So for the purposes of calculating my top of zone 3 and calculating ADS, I think either the 30 or 1 hour result is in the “close enough” territory for me.

Side note: It’s still a bit wild to me that you can just sign up for the national championship in mountain running! I was looking forward to seeing some elite athletes perform and they didn’t disappoint. Fun story, the top runners were faster on the uphill than I was on the downhill. The pros are just on another level, it’s astounding.