Well, my visit to the physical therapist went well today...my integrity is still intact, and I didn't get chewed out! I was actually feeling bad about riding the other day, knowing full well that I was going against 'doctor's' orders...so to speak. Not only that, but Al is my friend, and I thought he might feel a little disrespected if I went against his 'rules'. I was surprised to find him almost happy to hear that I had ridden, and that I had only experienced slight discomfort (BTW...the pain was gone this morning when I woke up!). I think he felt it was a good sign...but not necessarily a good test. He smiled and said "No problem John...I'll treat you for as long as you like!" I think I saw $$ in his eyes as he spoke those words!
After a little soft tissue work on the triceps tendon (ouch) I met up with the athletic trainer Josh, who also happens to be a great friend of mine...and bald too! You can see him on my website at http://www.scisport.net/SciSport_page/Speed_Camps.html. Josh and I are hooking up to do some speed camps throughout the year. So anyway...I got to move up to some advanced exercises today, one of which simulated the movement patterns and core recruitment of actual mountain bike riding. Picture this...I was kneeling on a large stability ball in front of a squat rack. The weight bar was positioned at a height that caused me to lean forward, supporting my body weight with my hands and arms as I gripped the bar...just like the handlebars on my bike. From that position I slowly moved side to side, flexing (bending) and extending (straightening) my elbows, similar to that which occurs when mountain biking. A pretty ingenius solution I thought! An amazing core workout as well! All in all, it was a great day at the physical therapy clinic!
Shortly before sitting down to write this blog, I wrapped up a high intensity ride in my garage, and turned out some pretty amazing numbers. I performed a test that I was supposed to complete prior to the beginning of my cycle training program. The test is used to approximate one's lactate threshold level (the point at which the body is unable to rid itself of excess lactic acid, through respiration), a key piece of information used to determine appropriate heart rate training zones. I had performed a more precise lactate threshold test some time ago, using some high dollar equipment (iMett lactate threshold testing device) that we use to test our firefighters cardio-respiratory fitness levels. I chose to use the values from this test to begin my program, but I was curious to see how accurate the 'approximation' test was. Amazingly, the results were nearly identical to those obtained from the iMett unit.
I performed the 'approximation' test on my bike, which is once again securely attached to my trainer, in my lonely garage! I performed a 10-minute warm-up, maintaining a cadence of 90rpm, in a moderately high gear. Once the warm-up was complete I cranked up the cadence to over 100rpm, assuming a 'race pace', which would be held for 30-minutes. At the 10-minute mark, I hit the lap button on my cycle computer/HR monitor, and did my best to maintain the pace, never dipping below 100rpm, cranking it out in the big ring with only 2 gears left...to put it bluntly, I was working my tail off! Once complete, I checked to see what my average HR was during the last 20-minutes...that value is my lactate threshold (LT). My LT was 158 beats per minute, and I burned up 480 kcal in just 20-minutes. That equates to 24 kcal per minute! That's crankin'!
Those of you who may be interested in training to improve your LT (and overall fitness level) can use this simple but demanding protocol...if you have a bike. This test can also be performed on a spin bike, or even a Life-Cycle at the gym. Once you determine your LT you can use a variety of training HR zones to perform interval training. It's much better than using the horrible 220-age formula!
Last but certainly not least! I weighed in yesterday morning at 187 pounds, and pinched at 15.3% body fat. I am 5 lbs away from my goal of 182, and roughly 1% away from my goal of 14% body fat. So far, so good!
Thanks for reading!
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