Friday, July 24, 2015

MAF Test

Here are the results of my MAF test. 2200 feet altitude. ~80 degrees.

A few disjointed thoughts. I started using the Maffetone method in 1996 so it's been 19 years. I've run hundreds of tests on top of coaching ~600 athletes over the past 15 years using some form or level of Maffetone training principles and seeing/ analyzing those results. So when I do a MAF test on the run (or bike) I pretty much know what the result will be, to a point, during the warm-up. That explains why this test was so brief. Just 2 miles. I ran 1 mile super easy (HR below 130) and then ran another mile again below 130 (the first mile on the screen shot) and then 2 miles at HR 140-150. I use 140-150 as my MAF range which is also synonymous with Zone 2 for me. I draw from several different methods, and heavily from experience, anytime I plan my own training and for my athletes as one size never fits all. Strict MAF using the formula would put me at 127-137. Part of my thinking with that is if I were to get a metabolic economy test I'm pretty certain it would show that my tipping point is over 160 HR. So when I'm training and using HR 140-150 I'm certain that I'm at an effort level that meets the needs of the training goal. Another purpose of MAF is to keep the effort healthful and moderate enough that I don't break down or risk injury. And that's another reason that I choose the higher range is that I'm durable. Running at 140-150 will not cause break down or injury for me. It's still too moderate.
  2 miles for the test. I ran the first mile and it was looking fine and then my pace dropped way off and by the end of mile 2 I had what I needed. There was a significant drop off in pace (1:29) which shows that I have very poor "endurance". No surprise. I could have easily ended the test at 1.25 miles (hell, I didn't even need a test to tell me that) and gotten what I needed. Even just a few miles stressed my body enough that my heart was working harder. I could have continued the test but why? To see even more shitty data? There was no need because continuing wouldn't have revealed any more useful information and also because I now have plenty of comparable data for a future test and that was really the only point of doing it. Stretching the test further would have revealed that I'm in terrible shape and my endurance sucks... duh.
  Another idea is that when I do test again and if my warm-up is correct and my first mile (or even first half mile) yields a slower pace than today's test I see little reason at all to continue. I'll stop the test immediately because I already know that the result won't be better. If I continue the test nothing in the HR data will reveal any answers or solutions or even what the problem is as the miles go on.
 That's all I have to say about that. For now.

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