Testing is simply a way to get a current benchmark for your fitness in a specific sport. We can test for heart rate, power, and pace. The good thing about testing is, it sets up realistic zones for where you are, and gives us some goals to reach for within your zones to improve on.

The hard thing about testing is, the result is only as good as how well you show up on any given day! Factors like your sleep; your life, work, and family stress; your training load leading in, your fuel, and your general wellness on that day can all impact the test.

And this is why we stress - NOT to stress over the result! We can always re-test and we can always tweak zones a bit following a test cycle.

Depending on your goals and what fits into your week, you may be given a range of the tests below. Some coaches, and athletes, also simply have a preference. Following testing, each type of test has a specific calculator to generate your zones.

There are others out there, but these are the most common ones we see:
🏊🏼‍♀️ Swim
-the 1000m time trial - exactly what it sounds like
-the 100m time trial - this is often done in 3x100m blocks
-CSS swim test - one 200m interval and one 400m interval are performed at max effort
🚴 Bike
-the 20 minute time trial - everyone’s…favorite?
-the 1 min ramp test - the sneaky one! Power increases each minute until you simply can’t pedal
-Critical Power tests - these can range in duration but are typically broken into 2-3 intervals of 3-12 min blocks
🏃🏻‍♀️ Run
-20 or 30 min time trials
-5k time trial

And finally, race days! Sometimes, depending on the distance and the effort level that day, we can set new zones based off of race day data. A solidly run 5k is often a good indicator of running fitness for both pace & HR zones.

Might as well get a medal and a free banana for your efforts, right?

The important thing to remember with testing is that it’s just…a test! Try to come in ready to do your best, and work with your coach to schedule these where they’ll work best within your training plans.