At Track Attack workouts, we do monthly time-trial testing to track each runner’s progress, but what about lactate threshold? Or anaerobic threshold or ventilatory threshold? And what exactly do each of these terms mean?

Anaerobic threshold (AT) and lactate threshold (LT) are pretty much synonymous, although lactate threshold is the more accurate term, since it is blood lactate level that determines this threshold value. LT is the point at which your body produces lactate faster than it can take it up, and therefore a rapid accumulation of lactate in the blood occurs. It is a useful number for endurance athletes to determine training heart rate zones and to predict racing performance. Usually, LT occurs right after ventilatory threshold (VT), which is the point at which breathing rate goes from increasing linearly to increasing exponentially. VT is not used very often, so LT is the preferred benchmark.

The best way to measure LT is to draw blood periodically during a graded exercise test and actually record blood lactate levels as they rise in accordance with heart rate. However, there are some ways to approximate lactate threshold on the track, but these methods are not quite as accurate and they do require some logistical planning on the coach’s part as well as some pacing experience on the runner’s part.

One example of measuring LT on the track is to do a 30-minute threshold run. Wearing heart rate monitors, the athletes run for 30-minutes at race pace, which should be the highest-intensity sustainable pace for that entire duration. Sustainable pace means speed is constant and heart rate does not fluctuate by more than ~5 beats per minute. During the 30-minute run, runners can call out their heart rate for coaches to record every minute. Most likely this will require two coaches on opposite sides of the track to record heart rate. After the test, coaches then average the heart rate values for the last 20 minutes, and that heart rate is the runner’s LT.

There are a couple reasons why this test only provides an estimate: (1) It takes a lot of experience for most runners to pace themselves at a constant speed while keeping their heart rate within that 5-beat range at the highest intensity that they can maintain. (2) Cardiovascular drift due to gradual dehydration during the 30-minutes causes heart rate to creep up, even if the runners can pace themselves perfectly.

So this method provides merely an estimate, but it is probably the best way to measure lactate threshold on the track without the hassle of drawing blood.

In my earlier days I was more of a purist, wearing sweat clothes and trying to break my personal best every time on my favorite local route. As I grew older and learned how to train smarter, I also found how beneficial gadgets could be in helping me attain my goals. First was the heart rate monitor (Polar), next was the portable digital music player (iPod), and now it’s the GPS watch (Garmin). At first these gadgets may just appear to be toys - Huh, that’s my heart rate…or…I love this song!…or…Hmmm, that’s my pace. Although it’s important to have fun when your running, the novelty will wear off and you will no longer benefit from the devices. Now you don’t have to read the instruction booklets word for word, but try to learn how to do something with each device that can help boost the effectiveness of your workouts and lead to greater results. Here are a few suggestions:

Heart Rate Monitor: Determine your heart rate zones and plan what heart rate zone you are going to run in before you lace up the sneakers. Every training run should have a purpose, even if that purpose is to mentally recharge, so you should make it a point to actually specify the purpose and use your heart rate monitor to stick to your plan.

Portable Digital Music Player: Music has affects on our mental and physical being that the scientific community is still trying to explain. Finding the right songs with the proper tempo for the purpose of your training run can have profound effects on your ability to get the most out of your run. Try different types of music until you find one that inspires you to maintain about 90 RPM cadence (count how many times your left foot hits the ground in a minute). So try 10 minutes of classical and count your cadence during the final minute, then try 10 minutes of alternative rock and count your cadence during the final minute and so on. Progressive Trance works for me!

GPS: Knowing your distance traveled and current and overall pace is extremely beneficial in itself if you have planned out how far and fast you are going to run beforehand. But you can take it to another level with some GPS watches and download courses. When you download a course, it can help you navigate an unfamiliar route (such as a marathon course you are prepping for) and race against either your own or another runners previous results. You can also post and retrieve courses from a network of user uploaded courses on websites such as MotionBased.com (check out my public activities on the website). The prices have come down considerably - I was able to purchase a Garmin Forerunner 305 on Amazon.com for about $180 after a mail-in rebate back in October - almost $200 off the original retail price! The Forerunner 405 is smaller, has a touch sensitive bezel for scrolling, and includes wireless transmission of data to your computer, but at about twice the price of what you can get the predecessor I’m not so sure it would be worth the extra money - unless you always have to have the newest stuff!

If you want to spend the money you’ve been saving up for a new car you might also be able to get your hands on anti-gravity treadmill. Call me a purist, but I’m not so sure if I would chose that over a new hybrid vehicle just yet!

On Saturday, January 26th, we hosted a run clinic at MetroSport in Folsom entitled “Running Your First Half Marathon”. We talked about what set the Half Marathon apart from other distances, training tips, race preparation, and answered questions. One hour flies by pretty quickly but we think everyone in attendance learned something new to help them with their first or next Half Marathon. We video taped and posted the clinic so check it out and see what you missed. Just don’t miss the next one because it will be hands-on - make that feets-on!

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