Whatever your training goals you will want to know how you are progressing. A simple way to keep a check on your progress is to do some baseline tests at regular intervals during your training. Every two or three months is generally sufficient, though you may wish to update information more frequently, say every six weeks.
Outlined below are a series of monitoring tests. The first four can be done by anyone who is in good health and reasonably fit, but Test 5 - The Step Test is very demanding and intended for those who are fit and in serious training for competition. There are also a series of physiological tests that can be used to monitor training. These can be found in Physiological Tests in Section 3.
Test 1 - Check Your Heart Rate
Record your resting heart rate (RHR) first thing in the morning before you get out of bed. As your fitness improves, your RHR should progressively come down. A sudden increase of around five to ten beats per minute could signal the onset of illness before other symptoms appear. It may also indicate that you may not be coping well with the training load. In this instance, suspend training and seek professional advice.
Test 2 - Timed Pieces
Select a set piece - time or distance (i.e. four minutes or 1,000m) - and record your performance as indicated on the Performance Monitor. Intervals of no less than six weeks are recommended between test pieces.
Test 3 - Anaerobic Capacity Test
This is a 20 second test which monitors the ability of the athlete to produce a lot of power in a short period of time. Set the damper at 5, the monitor on 20 seconds and row at maximum power and high rate.
Record the distance covered.
Test 4 - Maximum Power Test
This is a five stroke test which measures the peak power produced. Set the damper at 5, the monitor on 500m Pace and build the intensity and stroke rate over three strokes, then row at maximum power and speed for five strokes. Record the fastest pace (lowest 500m split). Make sure you row full length strokes during this test.
Test 5 - Step Test (for competitors only)
This is an incremental step test used to determine the athlete's current anaerobic threshold. It is physically very demanding, but does give a lot of information. You will need a heart rate monitor linked to the Indoor Rower.
Frequently Asked Question on the Baseline Test
answered by Terry O'Neill
Should I look to carry out a baseline or step test before starting a new cycle of training?
It is always a good idea to take a baseline test at the start of a programme to see where you are.
However, there are a couple of things you need to take into consideration.
If you are starting from scratch then the baseline data is relevant. If you are pretty fit at the moment and have competed recently you may find that the training in the preparation period may actually cause a drop in your test performance. This is nothing to worry about and is a reflection of the high intensity work completed recently. What you are doing is going back to basics and building a stronger foundation in the hope that you can go higher than before.
