Finally performed lactic threshold test!
 

The weather here in Upstate New York, until just this past week has been good enough to go out and ride. I finally gave up and put the bike in the cellar onto my trainer. Wasn't looking forward to using it.

To help me focus on the trainer I purchased a very simple program that's on my laptop. It's called TurboCrank and has a 7 week trainer program that gets progressively more difficult. I thought I'd go thru it twice this winter with a rest in between. By then hopefully it'll be early spring and I can be back out on the road. To really be able to utilize the program you need to have a HRM and cadance monitor on your bike.

Well! The first thing the program wants is a Lactic Threshold Test. It starts with a 15 min warmup, than it asks you to go all out for thirty minutes. :cry: It asks you to turn on your HRM 10 minutes into the torture and record the last 20 minutes. The average heart rate for that 20 minutes is used to calculate your LT and your training zones. Finally you get a 15 min cool down.

Well let me tell you I'm utterly exhausted:crash: !!! This LT test whipped my a##! One day later and my legs are still toast! Don't want to do that again any time soon.

The results pretty much matched how I felt on the bike during my normal riding. I'm 64 so I don't have a heartbeat like a humming bird. My HRM average was 152 BPM. This than gives me a Zone 3 range of 138- 149 BPM. I know that out on the road when I get above 135 BPM my breathing begins to get heavier, the test is right on!

OK, 14 weeks of trainer pain and we're back out onto the open road.:o

Curious how some of my fellow senior citizens have fared with this test?

I support you in your trainer quest my friend! I'm not sure but I think a true LT test is more involved. You may want to check in with the 50+ racers on that. Train on, don't just ride! :)

Feel free to take some pics of your pain cave and post in my indoor training thread.... Or wherever you like. That program you mention sounds interesting too. Tell us more.

If you go to turbcrank.com it will give you all the particulars. It's a inexpensive $20.00 program that you can download onto your laptop. It's all I need or want. As I indicated earlier, you'll need a HRM and cadance monitor on your bike. All the other things available were either to expensive and or complicated for me. Someone else on our forum recommended it earlier this fall when the topic of trainers came up.

Of course, a "true" LT test involves blood samples. But, I think you'll find credible definitions of LT which describe exactly what you did - LT is the average HR that one can sustain at "race pace". A functional definition. I have no idea how it correlates to an actual blood-based LT test though. But it seems to make sense to me.

The only thing I've beeen told that's different than what you did is that the average HR type of LT test should be done in an actual race - to make sure you're pushing yourself. But, based on what you've written, I'd guess you're pretty darn close to that! Certainly within an acceptable margin of error to calculate the training zones (which are ranges and seriously don't depend on 1, or even 5 BPM accuracy - or is that precision?)

But, I'm wondering why not just take up XC skiing when you can't ride your bike? Is it that important to be totally specific in your training? wouldn't a little variety and fresh air be more fun and better? (but I'm a skier, so it's easy for me to say that... and I don't ride or ski to "train". I ride and ski to enjoy myself and stay healthy and fit.)

If you call it a threshold test rather than an LT test, it's correct. LT is actually not that easy to determine as it involves looking for a 'knee' in a curve. Sorta up to interpretation. And then LT is only a somewhat understood marker of threshold. The last 20 of a 30 min TT test is just as good.

Keep in mind that HR can vary quite a bit for the same power output. If you're dehydrated it'll be high and your power will be low. If you're fighting off a cold or you're tired, it will go up easily but it'll be difficult to make it go high.

Camilo's point about ranges is very valid and quite often missed. They're bands, not discrete ranges.

As for the TurboCrank idea. I see that there is a manual. Do they mail it to you or is a PDF file?

It's a PDF file

I do quite a bit of cross training. Here in Central New York I usually get in 25-30 ski days in. :) The impetus for the bike trainer is that I'm training for a few Triathlons this coming summer. So I'm trying to maintain some or the fitness level I established last year. SOOO. a little biking, 5k training and pool swim laps when I can.

It helps to be retired!!! Let's me take my afternoon recovery nap!

I agree with Camilo about cross country skiing. I's a great workout. However, I would add, that any activity that gets you outside is good. How about snow shoeing or just going on very brisk walks in hilly terrain. There are two kinds of dogs - inside dogs and outside dogs. I'm an outside dog so I look for any activity that gets me out the door.

URL typo fixed