As the season starts to wind down, for most, it’s a great time to set some fitness benchmarks. Benchmarks are key to tracking improvement and ensuring that your training is actually doing what it’s supposed to do. They’re also a good way to see how much you slacked off during the winter!! Depending on the type of fitness you seek, you may want to keep track of more than just one of these tests.
Test #1 – A flat out 5km (3mile) run test keeping track of heart rate. For the athlete concerned with speed – Olympic distance, Sprint distance type stuff. As easy as it sounds, warm up really well, then giver!! Keep track of your time and Avg HR. In future tests you’ll be able to compare those two numbers and see where you stand. It doesn’t have to be exactly 5km either. Perhaps you have a favorite run route with no stop lights, doing the test there works just as well.
Test #2 – Low HR run test. Sometimes called MAF (Max Aerobic Frequency) tests. These are key for Ironman and Half Ironman athletes. The longer you can run at a lower HR, the better off you’ll be over the course of a long distance event. First step is to know your MAF – here’s a link for that calculation. Once you’ve got that down, you can get on with the test. It is best to do this test on a track to limit variables between tests. Warm up really well, at least 15 minutes. Then peg your HR at your MAF and keep track of your mile splits as well as your average HR for each split. Aim for at least 5 miles and as many as 12 miles if your splits are staying fairly steady. If you see a drop off of more than 20% from your 2nd interval you can stop the test as you’ll be running REALLY slow by then.
Test #3 – Bike test. You can do this a few different ways.
-Find a long hill (preferably over 45 minutes of climbing if you have that option), peg your HR, time yourself.
-Find a 10 minute climb and go up multiple times. This will be similar to the mile split MAF run test on the track. If you go up 6 times, keep track of each intervals time and HR.
-Or, get on the computrainer and put in a good 45′-1hr at a particular HR or wattage. In you choose to peg your HR, keep track of wattage over the allotted time. If you choose to peg wattage, keep track of HR over the allotted time.
Test #4 – Pool swim. 1000-2000 meter time trial and get a friend to keep track of your 100m splits. Giver!! This is a great tool to learn how to pace yourself properly too.
Really, there are endless ways to benchmark your fitness. If you are serious about improving, you should definitely keep track of your numbers. They will tell you about what you may be missing in training, and you will have concrete evidence to see what you’re doing right.
