I continue to circle around re-reading your Substack and Twitter, learning new things - thank you.
My context: I’m a competitive amateur runner. I have a good grasp of my run and bike zones by HR and pace/power and an indoor bike trainer.
Questions:
1) What is a good rule of thumb for figuring out the bike substitute for a Z2 or Z3 run? E.g., if I otherwise would do a 50:00 run in Z2, should I match that with a 50:00 Z2 bike? Or 1.5 or 2x as long on the bike (75:00 or 100:00)? Or is it based on TSS equivalency?
2) Are there any advantages to an athlete’s development as a runner by using Z3-Z5 bike workouts from a duathlon training plan?
Or should a runner, in general, stick to the bike for Z0, Z1 and Z2 metabolic fitness efforts and not use it for Z3-Z5?
I know you have shared ingenious use cases where the bike can be used to aid running specific capacity. E.g., the SART for testing run readiness, and your spin-ups help runners who lack good turnover or who don’t have good musculoskeletal durability, etc.
If you have the occasion to address any of this, it would help me refine my mental model of cross-training for runners - thank you.
Interestingly, I see that cross-training is getting a bit wider acceptance. It was fascinating to read that this year’s NCAA women’s D1 XC champ, Parker Valby, runs just 3 times a week, using cycling, a more evolved form of an elliptical machine and swimming for her other workouts.
Hi Gordo. New subscriber, loving your writing and video content.
Can you share any advice on the bike/smart trainer setup you recommend for someone coming to road cycling for (almost) the first time, wishing to do the bulk of their training inside with the occasional outdoor ride? I'm currently a marathoner managing ok with the run volume and I ride a mountain bike for a work commute every now and then. Cheers, and thank you!
Hi Gordo, I live in a hot place and I'm wondering about this: is lactate always and absolutely linked to heart rate? For example, if I run on a very hot day my pulse may be 10 beats higher for the same route. In this case, can I move the limits of my training zones accordingly (5/10 beats)? Can I assume that the higher strain on the cardiovascular system is only due to body cooling, and not to a general physiological effort?
So, can I do a lactate test on a 30 degree day, or would it be compromised? Thank you!
Hi Gordo,
I continue to circle around re-reading your Substack and Twitter, learning new things - thank you.
My context: I’m a competitive amateur runner. I have a good grasp of my run and bike zones by HR and pace/power and an indoor bike trainer.
Questions:
1) What is a good rule of thumb for figuring out the bike substitute for a Z2 or Z3 run? E.g., if I otherwise would do a 50:00 run in Z2, should I match that with a 50:00 Z2 bike? Or 1.5 or 2x as long on the bike (75:00 or 100:00)? Or is it based on TSS equivalency?
2) Are there any advantages to an athlete’s development as a runner by using Z3-Z5 bike workouts from a duathlon training plan?
Or should a runner, in general, stick to the bike for Z0, Z1 and Z2 metabolic fitness efforts and not use it for Z3-Z5?
I know you have shared ingenious use cases where the bike can be used to aid running specific capacity. E.g., the SART for testing run readiness, and your spin-ups help runners who lack good turnover or who don’t have good musculoskeletal durability, etc.
If you have the occasion to address any of this, it would help me refine my mental model of cross-training for runners - thank you.
Interestingly, I see that cross-training is getting a bit wider acceptance. It was fascinating to read that this year’s NCAA women’s D1 XC champ, Parker Valby, runs just 3 times a week, using cycling, a more evolved form of an elliptical machine and swimming for her other workouts.
Hi Gordo. New subscriber, loving your writing and video content.
Can you share any advice on the bike/smart trainer setup you recommend for someone coming to road cycling for (almost) the first time, wishing to do the bulk of their training inside with the occasional outdoor ride? I'm currently a marathoner managing ok with the run volume and I ride a mountain bike for a work commute every now and then. Cheers, and thank you!
Hi Gordo, I live in a hot place and I'm wondering about this: is lactate always and absolutely linked to heart rate? For example, if I run on a very hot day my pulse may be 10 beats higher for the same route. In this case, can I move the limits of my training zones accordingly (5/10 beats)? Can I assume that the higher strain on the cardiovascular system is only due to body cooling, and not to a general physiological effort?
So, can I do a lactate test on a 30 degree day, or would it be compromised? Thank you!