Gen S&C II — Retake Field Test?

Training Q&A [Moderated]
1

Hey Docs,

I started your General Strength and Conditioning II template two days ago. Love the program, thanks for the hard work you put into it.

On Day 1 I took the Functional Threshold Test, measuring HR with a Polar H10 chest strap, and shooting for 75% of predicted HRmax. I found it hard to guess what pace to bike at, and at the end I felt like I could keep going for a long time.

On Day 2, instead of the next conditioning workout, I repeated the test. This time, I started with more intensity and was more aggressive in upping it during the test. Still, I had to turn it way up in the last five minutes, and I had to sprint the last minute because I still had more in the tank.

Based on that test, my calculated zones and HRmax (both calculated from the spreadsheet) are as follows:

Zone 1 102–116
Zone 2 116–128
Zone 3 128–137
Zone 4 138–144
Zone 5 145–154
HRmax [208- 0.7*(age=32)] 186

Today (Day 3) I tried a conditioning workout with these numbers, and found it difficult to stay in Zone 2 because the range is so small, and because I couldn’t exert myself much without going into Zones 3–5.

My questions are: 1. Should the top of Zone 5 be about equal to the calculated HRmax? Is the fact that it is not another sign that I did the test too slowly?
2. Should I retake the test again, but even more intensely? If so, should I sub it in for another conditioning workout as before? Or maybe try to do it in addition to the other Week 1 workouts?
3. (More abstract, related question) Why do I seem to be so bad at estimating my capacity? I feel similarly unconfident with my RIR estimates during resistance training, even though I have more experience with that. Are some people just bad at that? If it matters, my primary goal right now is to get into shape to start playing pickup basketball.

Once again thanks so much for all the excellent resources you have put together!

2

Lankmaster,

Thanks for the post and kind words. For your questions:

  1. Yep, should be pretty close. I think if you weren’t wiped after the field test, it was probably a bit too conservative. You can use your calculated HRmax for the first block and see how that goes.
  2. I would just use the predicted HR for the first block. You can smooth over the HR zones to span ~15 to 20 bpm if that’s helpful. Sometimes when the field test is a bit low, the zones get scrunched.
  3. I’m not sure this is even accurate, as I have not seen you “mis-rate” an effort. It’s entirely possible that your conditioning is a bit lower than predicted right now and the numbers you generated are legit. I do think the field test should feel like a max effort, similar to maxing out your lifts. The result is pretty binary, e.g. were you able to complete the piece at a particular pace or lift the weight. Similar to the concerns over RPE accuracy in lifting, I have little concerns that relatively small differences in pacing are going to make big differences in outcomes.

-Jordan

3

Thank you for the reply, all of that makes sense. I will do what you suggested and use HRmax to set zones for block one.