Description of how to combine pace / power / heart rate / perceived exertion to perform the highest quality workouts and prevent over training.

1. Intensity Metric
Triangulation
Will Kirousis, BS, CSCS, CISSN | Tri-Hard

2. Intensity Metric
Triangulation:
Balancing the incoming
data, with the increasing
fatigue of a specific
workout to better
understand how to
adjust that workout,
subsequent workouts
and when summed over
time, how to adjust
training overall.

3. Cardiovascular limits
Thermal
Brain O2
Low Glycogen
Low hydration
Biomechanical
Metabolic (H+, La etc)
Changing motivation
Changing risk/reward balance
Leaky calcium channels
Motor unit cycling
+
Point of time in a given workout
+
Duration of a given workout
+
Workouts relationship to overall training plan
+
Knowledge of what’s coming (within the workout and beyond)
Fatigueogens:
Logistics:
Anticipatory
Regulation

4. Measureables
Pace
(swimming
and running)
How fast are
you going?
Power output
(cycling)
How much
work are you
doing?
Heart rate
(cycling and
running)
How stressful
is this
workout?

5. Decision to
perform
Muscular
work / Energy
Production
(ATP)
Increases in:
HR,
Respiration,
Temperature,
H+…
Brain sum’s
internal
environment,
past, current,
future.
Anticipatory
Regulation
and pacing
Adjustments
to specific
workout/race
OR training
overall
Intensity Metric
Triangulation
The Science
Measured as
power / pace
Measured as
change in HR
(bpm)
Felt as change in
RPE

6. Intensity Metric
Triangulation
Pace /
Power
RPE
Heart
Rate
Relates to the current workout,
anticipated workouts, and past
training
IntensityMetricTriangulation
TheApplication

7. What’s
Happening
 PACE/POWER OUPUT is where it should be.
 HEART RATE is where it should be for this
pace/power output.
 PERCIEVED EXERTION is where it should be for this
pace/power output.
What It Means  Everything is copasetic.
What to Do  Continue on as planned.
It’s All Good
This is what you will experience most often.

8. What’s
Happening
 PACE/POWER OUPUT is where it should
be.
 HEART RATE is lower than it should be for
this pace/power output.
 PERCIEVED EXERTION is where it should
be for this pace/power output.
What It
Means
 You are very fresh for this workout because
you are in excellent recovery balance.
What to Do  Continue on as planned.
You’re Living Great—Keep It Up!
You will experience this periodically if you have
great chronic sleep, rest, and nutrition habits.
This is a great place to be.

9. What’s
Happening
 PACE/POWER OUPUT is higher than it
should be.
 HEART RATE is where it should be for this
pace/power output.
 PERCIEVED EXERTION is lower than it
should be for this pace/power output.
What It
Means
 You are improving.
What to Do  Continue on as planned.
You’re Improving—Yes!
The more you are improving, the more you will experience
workouts like this. When they happen, celebrate your
progress.

10. What’s
Happening
 PACE/POWER OUPUT is where it should be.
 HEART RATE is higher than it should be for this
pace/power output.
 PERCIEVED EXERTION is higher than it should be
for this pace/power output.
What It
Means
 You are getting tired as the workout progresses.
 You are dehydrated.
 You are experiencing heat stress.
What to Do  Continue on with the workout.
 Reduce your pace/power output to bring your heart
rate down into a normal range for you for this
intensity.
 Make sure you are drinking enough fluid (see your
race-nutrition plan).
A Few Tweaks Are In Order
This happens when you’re acutely tired. Easing up a
bit and making sure you’re well-hydrated will keep you
going well.

11. What’s
Happening
 PACE/POWER OUPUT is where it should be.
 HEART RATE is lower than it should be for this
pace/power output.
 PERCIEVED EXERTION is higher than it should be
for this pace/power output.
What It
Means
 You are most likely low on carbohydrate.
What to Do  Continue on with the workout.
 For race-specific bricks and race-specific runs,
make sure you are executing your race-nutrition
plan to the letter.
 In your meals/snacks after this workout, increase
your intake of starchy carbohydrates for at least 24-
48 hours).
You Need Carbohydrate
This happens when you’re low on carbohydrate. With
some nutrition tweaks, you will get back on track.

12. What’s
Happening
 PACE/POWER OUPUT is lower than it should be.
 HEART RATE is lower than it should be for this
pace/power output.
 PERCIEVED EXERTION is higher than it should be
for this pace/power output.
What It
Means
 You’re tired (from recent workouts, “life”, or a
combination).
What to Do  Do the first third of the workout and see if things
improve.
 If things improve, continue on with the workout.
 If things don’t improve, stop the workout.
 If you stop the workout, you need to start a recovery
period of no more than 50% current training volume
done at low intensity for 5-10 days.
 Make sure your sleep, rest, and nutrition habits are
top notch the next several days.
You May Need to Stop
This happens when you’re chronically tired. Some training
adjustments are usually in order when this happens.

13. Additional Questions?
Will Kirousis or Jason Gootman
will@tri-hard.com or jason@tri-hard.com
978.466.5151 or 207.805.1020