Originally Posted by
Seattle Forrest
But it's a different thing to estimate how much power you're using, vs how much you're capable of producing. Even with a direct force power meter it takes some work to nail down your FTP. You're right that the system demands a number, and maybe one Strava guess is better than another, I don't know. But I'd put a lot less stock in their FTP estimates.
You're certainly right about "less stock." I finally felt recovered enough to put in a little effort on my rollers this evening. I took it up to my usual one hour of VT1 pace, about 116 HR or 86% of LT, 18-18.5 mph on my rollers. When I hold that steady for an hour, my legs hurt at the end, but if I really want to torture them I can go 1.5 hours. Tough on rollers, no little downhills, eh? I was putting out ~150 watts, so that certainly isn't my FTP. 15' of 150 didn't even get me breathing hard. So it's got to be at least 160. I'll try the hour at 160 test when I'm recovered from RAMROD. I forget that those power numbers I'm seeing on Strava are for 7-10 hour climbing rides, so all I can do for that time period, keeping my output even, is not a high percentage of my FTP.