T minus 31

Weight : 57.2 kg
Yesterday's food : You have used 1314 out of your net daily budget of 1400 calories and have 86 calories remaining. 16% of the calories are from fat, 40% from protein, 44% from carbs
Exercise : Lower Body + Lactate Threshold Test
47 min: 371 calories : 163 max hr : 126 average hr (lower body and 10 mins on treadmill)
20 min: 252 calories : 170 max hr : 162 average hr (lactate threshold test)
Total kilometres 30 mins : 3.8 km
Hard cadence : 8.0 km/hr 167 bpm (music not hr)

Don't ask me what a lactate threshold test is because I don't really know. I just had to run as hard as I could for 30 minutes and then timed the last 20 minutes to get my average heart rate.

I was surprised that I could maintain 160bpm for so long. I probably could have pushed a little harder because I still sprinted out the last minute. I am confused as to why my total kilometres were so low though because I ran the Bridge Run (9km) in 1 hour at a much easier pace so I should have been able to get through at least 4.5km in 30 mins. I suppose it has something to do with stride length on the treadmill rather than running on the road.

I wonder if this means I am fit or not? Coach is still recovering from surgery so I won't get any feedback for a few more days. I think that it might mean that instead of doing my steady state cardio at 140 bpm I am going to have to do it at a higher rate :) Any fitness experts out there might be able to give me a clue in the meantime?

It goes to show that the maximum heart rate calculations for your age are not always accurate. My max heart rate is 177 (220-43 years old) so by those calculations I was running for 30 minutes at 92% of max heart rate. This is the so called 'anaerobic' zone (where you cease burning oxygen) and is unsustainable except for short bursts of effort. Clearly 160 bpm is not anaerobic for me.

In other news, my period arrived yesterday afternoon a week late. If I had stayed on schedule next month it would have arrived a week before the competition and I would have been all over the bloating but now it will be a bit of a lucky dip. If it comes in 4 weeks it will arrive before the comp but if it is overdue I will be right in the middle of PMT bloat on 25 May. As I can't do much about it now, I'll just have to hope for the best.

My weight is all over the shop at the moment but I am not too concerned. I haven't been sleeping very well at the moment, and I have had a few "salty" days. Yesterday I had a work lunch at a restaurant and my grilled chicken tasted salty. I still look the same, and yesterday I noticed my quad muscles showing a bit more so it will be OK.