To test your fitness, you have to do a number of different tests. Here are three of them. The One Mile Run - This is a simple way to test your speed and lactate threshold. Do this once a month and record your time in your training log. You can then track your progress over time. Progressively lower times mean you are becoming more fit. Progressively increasing times means that you are stagnating or are becoming less fit. This means you have to train harder or change your training program.
Time Test - Once every two or three weeks you want to to test your long term endurance by seeing how long you can run at seventy percent to eighty percent of your max heart rate, or the highest pace that you can run at while holding a conversation. If you are able to add a minute or two with each session without stopping, you are becoming more fit. If you notice decreasing times, you are stagnating or becoming less fit.
Treadmill Test - Once a week, for several weeks, do the same workout with the same parameters. For instance, set your treadmill at a two to three percent incline at an eight minute per mile pace, for thirty minutes. Record your average heart rate. If your average heart rate decreases over the weeks, then that means you are getting more fit. Your heart has to work less to do the same work. If your average heart rate is increasing over the weeks, that means you are stagnating or you are becoming less fit.
I am the author of several articles covering a wide range of topics. You can read my recent articles about wine bottle chiller.
