Quick Update: VO2Max Testing

So Wednesday I popped up to Moncton to meet with Gilles at O2Max for a V.O2 Max test. 

I have done great stuff with the info that Kinesic Sport Lab gave me from various blood lactate tests and I really had no idea what new info I could receive.

I will also say that recently it is a little hard to get the motivation going because it feels like I have plateaued and at age 48 was there anywhere to go.

So the testing process is pretty simple and straight forward. Initially you test your lung capacity using a spirometer. From here we found out that I have pretty decently large lung capacity, almost 7 litres. So that was good to hear. We also took measurements of body composition: height, weight, body fat.

 After this the process is nice and easy. You put on a face mask that will measure your breathing as you ramp up through a treadmill running session. As your breath is being measured, so is your heart rate with a heart rate strap. The time on treadmill is only about 15 minutes but you have to push to the end.

After the test we determined that I am using 55% of those giant lungs at best. Essentially I am hyperventilating as I get faster but I have the capacity to push through and run like that for long periods.  My V.O2 Max is listed at 65 and I know from race results the VDotO2 training system that I am not hitting that level. I sit around a 58-59 usually, though I have seen a 60 once. While your V.O2 Max is only the potential you have, it is telling that with some extra effort to get more control of my breathing, I could certainly push past the plateau I am on. 

So where to? Learning to breath better. Take advantage of these huge lungs and see where I can go and maybe I haven’t plateaued quite yet.

I think both the Blood Lactate tests I have done and this V.O2 Max test have been amazing tools to help me become a better runner by using the tools I already have by training smarter.  And there is no time like right now to see what you could potentially do. New equipment on the market makes these sorts of test far more available to everyone. It is still essential to work with someone who can interpret the data you get and help you come up with the best plan going forward.

Natal Day Weekend Racing 2022

Last weekend was Natal Day weekend, a civic holiday and a traditional time to host races. I have done many different races over the years on this weekend and this year I chose to run hard on all three days. 

Saturday morning started with the traditional Chain of Lakes #parkrun. For those not in the know, it is a free timed 5K event open to everyone and is held all over the world. Our local event started in 2019, was stopped during COVID lockdowns and began again earlier this year. 

I tend to use the parkrun event as an opportunity to get a good hard run in. This weekend I decided to hold back a little and use it as an opportunity to warm myself up for racing over the two following days. I also wanted to really focus on maintaining an even paced run. So the goal was to run a 20 minute 5K and try to keep even splits.

I started nice and easy and built up to a solid 4 minute pace. On the way down the hill I was running with a small group that included some parkrun tourists. At the turn around a made sure to push my effort a little to maintain pace as the 2.5km uphill climb began. 

I distanced myself from all but Paul who was way out front trying to establish a good PB time for the year. I did manage to put a little extra into the final kilometer and finished in 19:38 with some pretty even running. That felt good. 

 

Sunday morning I wok up and prepped for the MacPass Mile. Sadly I don't have any photos of my run. I wasn't sure how fast of a mile I had in me. in 2018 I ran this event in 5:02. I knew enough to start up front. This mile is on a hilly bridge. You go down hill then up a very steep hills and finally come down hill for a fast finish. It is certainly not an even split, or even paced event.

I took off from the start and was immediately with the lead group. As we hot the uphill section I found myself drifting into a solid 5th place. By the top of the big climb my pace was a 3:20. With half of the race to go, I had to di deep to find the speed to get anywhere close to a low 5 minute finish. 

I was on Aaron's feet for the next 400m, then he started to pull slightly away. I could hear a runner right behind me. Then with around 200m to go, I pushed as hard as I could. My pace dropped to around a 2:40 min/km effort. I was stuck on Aaron's heels and we crossed the finish line 1 second apart. A 5:06 official time. I am happy with that, as I have been really trying to find that top end speed I had been working towards before taking on the Ultra distance events last year. 5th place.   

Monday morning was the main event. While I gave a good effort on the Bridge Mile, the Natal Day 5.4 Miler (8.9 km) was my real fitness test. Earlier in the year I had planned on taking on a fast 10K event, but I just never felt good enough in training to really push myself. Now with some faster runs in my legs and  a few sub 18 minute 5 km parkruns results, I was ready to see where I was. 

A brief warmup run with some great friends from Club Dog Runnin (no dogs today!) and we were gathered to the start line. I'm in there somewhere, I think I'm one of the few with a hat!

Both the 1.8 mile and 5.4 mile event start together (the longer race is 3 laps). Craig was running the 1.8 mile and his pace was going to be similar to mine, so lap 1 was going to be fun. 

Off we went, the leaders zooming off towards the future. I found my effort of around a 3:40 pace going up the first climb. My goal was a 3:38-3:40 min/km pace if all went well. Kilometer 1 is mostly uphill, then 2 is very downhill and 3 is flat/slight uphill until the final 300m, which is a good climb. 

Craig ended up running slightly ahead of me for much of his race. We climbed the final hill together and then he blew threw the finish line with at a 3:35 avg pace. A great showing! I continued on. 

That lap would be my fastest. I had to settle down a bit because 3:35 was not going to happen. Lap two was the same as lap one of course but now I had a hitchhiker. I could feel another runner on my heels that whole lap, but I really had to stick to my pace. The cloud were staying over the sun, so the overall temperature wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been. As I approached the end of the lap, I gave a nice effort up the climb to start lap 3. This seems to have broken my hitchhiker off my heels. 

Lap 3 was a bit all over the place (literally). Lap 2 had seen a little over taking of slower runners, but lap 3 was quite busy. No complaints, it is all part of the fun and everyone was having a great time. 

I had a goal of finishing under 32 minutes. Now that was when I mistakenly thought the race was 8.6km long. As I run past the 8.6 km mark, I realized that goal might not happen. With the final climb coming it was time to push hard. 

I zipped over the finish line in 32:09 with splits of 10:32, 10:51, and 10:46. An avg pace of 3:37. Faster than I hoped and I feel I could have held that pace for another 1.1 km without issue. Meaning my 10km race pace is almost to where I want it to be. That would likely put me in a low 36 result and I am aiming at a high 35 min result. Best of all I wasn't beat up. I ended up running again later that day with the BLT Runners as well. 

It feels great to be back to a place where I can start to push my effort in training again. Ultra stuff was fun, but it took a lot out of me and I needed a good bit of time to recover. Time and physio and chiro and massage. 

So huge shout out to Anita at Beaverbank Physio who put me back together again and a massive thanks to Seaside Chiropractic with Alan and Dan making sure things just work. 

I have really been loving the On Running Cloud Monsters. I have never been one for a big cushioned shoe, but this shoe is really peppy and maybe it is what I needed. Maybe one day I will try a fancy super shoe, until then, the purple beasts will do.