Some info from Juerg on the LBP test :-
Starting with a 3 min step test to produce your performance line with aiming to find LLL and ULL and perhaps the trend of the line with a positive or negative deflection , which will give you some ideas , whether the athlet is on his "coordination / muscular " limitation , or on his "cardio " limitation.
This performance line will give you the feedback , whether the training you did over a certain amount of time , is changing your performance and possibly your zones (STF /or FTF or high intensity changes ).
Now at the end of this first part you take as usual a lactate sample and that's where we start the second part of FaCT. So we do not take lactate on the way up , out of all the now often discussed reasons.
We actually produce a problem for the body and now in the second part like to see , by which HR we can solve, reduce ,the problem, and when does it starts again. ( searching for LBP )
Now after your first reading you drop down to 30-40 beats or to HR @ percieved effort of 4 on the first part of the test.
Once you reach the target HR you stay for 2 - 3 min there and take a second lactate, stay for 1 more minute ( till result ) and depending on the result you choose the next target HR )
- If there is a clear drop like in top athletes from 7 down to 3 , you may go up immediatly by 10 beats. Now you take a sample after 21/2 minute , but keep the athleteon the same HR and wait for the result. If there is a change more than 1 mmol/L you go up again, if there is less of a change you take a second reading after another 2 - 3 min , , wait for result and decide the next step. This way you have a "dynamic " in the same step and see the trend in this step.
Now you keep these system going till end of the test.
On the software you will see therefor some completely vertical lines , which really help you to see the trend and will give you much more info on each athlete.
You as well have a better info on the green line ( the recovery line ) to see possible changes in this area of your athlete.
On a field test : Yes you go LBP + - 5 and check every about 8 - 10 min and see the trend during this training to verify the actual LBP situation. Remember you like to "overload a spec. system , but you not like to "over push".
Stress is not always overload , but stimulating differently . (See Stress research by Hans Selye )
More " biochemically "looked at.
At the start of the test you are on a relative low intensity. In these phase your glycolytic flux is low and you may use mainly FFA as your substrate for energy production. These will take place mainly in the muscles under the name "mitochondrial respiration ".
With each step we increase intensity and therefor the blood flow, as well as the glucose uptake into your skeletal muscles will increase.. Together with this the free calcium as well as the Pi ( inorganic phosphate ) will increase slightly as well., and this will stimulate the activity of phosphorylase.. Now the increase of glucose uptake together with an increase of glycogenolysis will again increase the glycolytic flux and as a result this will decrease the relative contribution of FFA oxidation to the total ATP regeneration.
Now here is , where we may be able to see the change in RR and O2 sat during the first part of the test, which will help us therefor to find the individual STF zone or start of the FTF a zone .
Now as wee keep increasing the intensity we may still be in a "steady state " , but may have as the main energy source glucose. Now in this stage we will have an increase of H+ production , but thanks to "lactate " we will see a take over off H+ in the steps - pyruvate - lactate , and this lactate will be transported as long as possible into the mitochondria for oxidative phosphorylation. So we actually have already a lactate production , and a stimulation for lactate transportation and H+ "buffering " , but all still takes place in the working muscle, and is not yet "out of control" . If we now over reach this situation , meaning the exercise intensity increases up to a level, where we exceed this balance (LBP reached ) we come to the point where the cytosolic ATP demand can't be handled anymore by mitochondrial respiration. Here now we will see a transient increase in ADP , which causes an increase rate of CK reaction. The Pi will start to accumulate and providing therefor added substrate for glycogenolysis and glycolysis and increasing the glycolytic flux even more. These events lead to a very rapid increase in proton (H+) release. Consequently the main cause of an increase of proton release is the increasing rate of glycolytic flux as well as the now increasing dependence on glycolytic turnover.
Now as Sahlin et all (1987 ) pointed out these situation - glycolytic flux up - decreased cytosolic redox (NAD+/NADH) results in an increased rate of lactate production. Now this production of lactate is beneficial for the regeneration of NAD+ as well as a "buffer" of H+.
Now if this is going "out of control" we have the help of the so called "lactate-transporter (MCT ) which are as well co-transporters of protons.
Together with this transporter we have as well Na+ and HCO3- as additional transporters.
That's where we are above LBP , but possibly still below ULL and that's the reason , why we can sustain speeds above LBP for a certain amount of time. Now the level of lactate we finaly can measure in the blood is therefor depending on a lot of additional situations in the individual athlets body . -A few points :
Muscle fiber type
- capillarisation to other body parts , which are slightly involved in the work , but still can work with mitochondrial respiration.
- HCO3 - situation , which possibly could be improved by certain type of Spiro Tiger training.
-RR ability to exhale CO2 in a much bigger volume , due to better respiratory muscle situation.
and for sure some more points.
Now if you but these above practical info together with the theoretical points , you may come somewhat closer to our idea of testing.
We use testing mainly to control progess , but much more to set the "zones " depending on each athletes individual responds to the training , respective to his recovery.
Summary >
A " zone 1 " for us is not always a zone 1 and may change due to a previous stimmulation ( hard training / race and so on)
That's exactly why we believe a"calculated " training zoning is not working, and as one guy "asked on an other forum:
Calculated zone is better than nothing , I would have to argue , no , feeling is much better than a calculated zone.