Lap
A lap is a manually set or automatically generated time or distance segment within a training session that is analysed separately from the whole.
Definition
“Lap” is a delimited segment within a recorded training session, set either manually by pressing a button or automatically by a rule (time, distance, position, workout step). Each lap receives its own metrics such as duration, distance, average power, pace and heart rate.
The term comes from track sports, where a lap really was a lap of the stadium. Today a lap is any subdivision of a session.
Why it matters
A session viewed as a whole hides what happened in its parts. In an interval workout, what matters is the power in the efforts and the recovery in between, not the average across everything. Laps make the structure of a session visible and analysable.
Cleanly set laps are also the basis for comparing plan and execution. Only when the effort segments exist as separate laps can you check whether the planned intensity and duration were hit.
| Lap type | Trigger | Typical use | Advantage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manual | Lap button | Intervals, climbs, race segments | Full control |
| Auto lap by distance | Every e.g. 1 km or 5 km | Steady runs, long rides | Even splits |
| Auto lap by time | Every e.g. 5 min | Trainer sessions, tempo runs | Time-based control |
| Auto lap by position | Recurring location | Track, circuit | Laps without button presses |
| Structured workout step | From the training plan | Planned intervals | Segment and target are linked |
Auto laps by distance and manual laps can be combined on many watches, with a manual press resetting the automatic count. On the track, GPS distance is too imprecise for auto laps; manual or position-based laps are preferable there.
How obseed measures it
obseed imports laps from the watch or bike computer recording and analyses each one individually: duration, distance, average and maximum values for power, pace, heart rate and cadence, plus time in zones per lap.
For structured workouts from the plan, the planned steps are set against the recorded laps. This shows whether an interval was too short, too long or ridden in the wrong zone.
Example
A runner completes 6 × 1000 m with 2-minute jog recoveries. The watch sets a lap automatically at every transition because the workout was loaded as a structure.
Lap Segment Duration Pace HR avg HR max
1 Interval 1 3:52 3:52/km 168 176
2 Recovery 1 2:00 6:10/km 152 168
3 Interval 2 3:50 3:50/km 172 179
4 Recovery 2 2:00 6:05/km 155 172
...
11 Interval 6 3:58 3:58/km 178 184The whole session shows an average of 4:45/km at 163 bpm, which says nothing about the quality of the intervals. At lap level it becomes visible: pace drops by 8 seconds from the second to the sixth interval while heart rate rises by 6 beats. The intervals were started too fast.
Categories
- Technische Begriffe
- Trainingsaufzeichnung