4 things you need to know about lactate testing

Lactate testing, a practice that has been around since the 1950s, has recently gained popularity among triathletes. This increase in popularity can be attributed to the success of Norwegian triathletes, who frequently use lactate testing in their training. As a result, lactate strips started selling like hotcakes. I was interested in the potential benefits of lactate testing for my own training and for the athletes I coach, so I borrowed a lactate meter and decided to give it a try.

1. What it’s for

There are several things lactate testing is used for. Key ones are:

• Intensity control
• Monitoring progress
• Identifying the balance between carbohydrate and fat metabolism
• Monitoring recovery.

Determining an individual’s lactate profile is crucial for understanding their endurance fitness and monitoring training progress. Lactate profiles are highly individual, and thresholds can occur at varying lactate concentrations. To gain insight into one’s own lactate profile, it’s important to conduct a step test. I personally conducted step tests in three different disciplines: cycling, swimming and running. While I was able to attain consistent and reliable results from the cycling test, the results from the swimming and running tests were unusable. More on that later.

There are many definitions of thresholds, but in triathlon circles these two are commonly referred to: 

• LT1 is the intensity at which we see a rise of lactate above the baseline. Up until this point, exercise has been fuelled almost exclusively by fats. Most athletes can hold this intensity for 3-4 hours.
• LT2 is a point at which the lactate starts building up exponentially. For most people, this occurs around 4 mmol/L.

2. How reliable it is

As valuable as it can be, lactate testing is not always a straightforward process. I mentioned earlier that my first test on the bike produced reliable results, but the subsequent swim and run tests did not go as well. For the swim test, I had an assistant, but he lacked experience and the results were not useful. The lactate level never exceeded 2.8 mmol/L even though the effort was close to all out in the final stage of the test. Similarly, during the run test, the lactate level never exceeded 2.4 mmol/L.

The cause could be contamination of the testing samples. The device I used required only 0.2 microliters of blood, making it highly susceptible to contamination. I suspect that the test results were invalidated by water during the swim test and sweat during the run test (it was a humid day).

It’s important to note that test results can also be influenced by other factors such as nutrition, hydration status, previous training, and caffeine intake. As the results of the swim and run tests indicated, it’s important to be mindful of these variables, as well as proper preparation and technique, to ensure accurate and reliable results. Once you start getting accurate results you need several rounds of testing to start understanding your lactate profile. 

3. Is it expensive

Lactate testing can be a valuable tool for evaluating endurance fitness and monitoring training progress, but it can also be an expensive endeavor. One of the biggest costs associated with lactate testing is the meter itself, which can cost around 500 euros. Additionally, test strips are also a significant cost, and they can add up quickly. If you want to do lactate testing properly, you will likely need a lot of test strips. For example, I paid 90 euros for 24 strips. This can make lactate testing cost-prohibitive for some individuals, especially if regular testing is needed. 

An alternative to regular lactate testing would be to use the testing sporadically to calibrate your feeling and monitor progress. This approach can still provide valuable insights into your endurance fitness and training progress, while also helping you get a better understanding of your lactate profile. However, it’s important to note that even with sporadic testing, you will still need to do a lot of testing until you start getting reliable results and fully understand your lactate profile. This approach can be a more cost-effective solution than regular testing, but it does require some patience and consistent monitoring of your performance.

4. Does it take a lot of time

Managing time for training can be a challenge for many of us, as we often have to balance our training with other responsibilities and obligations. Lactate testing can add an additional layer of complexity to this already demanding process. Alongside all the other things to consider when planning your training session, you also need to ensure that you have the meter, strips, needles, tissues… You also need to ensure that you have a clean and safe place to conduct the test. Additionally, you will need to factor in the time required for the test itself, as well as the time needed to analyze and interpret the results. All of these extra steps can make training more challenging, especially for individuals who have a busy schedule and need to maximize the time they have available for training.

Conclusion

For the majority of athletes, even most pros, there are better ways to monitor intensity than lactate testing. Powermeters, for example, are cheaper, have a smaller margin of error, and are much easier to use. It also needs to be said that you don’t need a device to tell you how hard you’re going. I’ve trained with world champions and Olympic medalists who go primarily on feel. If it’s simple and cheap it doesn’t mean it doesn’t work.