Watts Doc #36: How Power Meters Make Lactate Testing Nearly Obsolete
Kolie makes his case that power meters are rendering lactate testing obsolete for most cyclists. After some background about lactate and why lactate testing was (and still is) historically crucial for science, we compare lactate test values in ramp and MLSS tests between individuals from an excellent but under-appreciated study. We also dig deep into more recent data, from the lactate test of a former world champion and Kolie's own surprising MLSS test, and the physiology explaining these results. We conclude with practical considerations about what threshold means, and why power meters are our best way to measure it.