Power Meter User Survey...
02-24-11, 01:45 PM
#26
fuggitivo solitario
I'll tell any of my competitors my exact numbers, and in fact I do (post them on the blog).. they can glean my power profile from racing with me anyway.
If someone can beat you just because they know your power numbers, they're stronger than you anyway.
I'm not saying we should all whip out our FTPs, just that it doesn't have to be a big secret either like Co'Cola's recipe.
If someone can beat you just because they know your power numbers, they're stronger than you anyway.
I'm not saying we should all whip out our FTPs, just that it doesn't have to be a big secret either like Co'Cola's recipe.
Personally, i post about my numbers quite often.
Yep.
02-24-11, 04:07 PM
#27
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I'll throw mine out there frequently because I came from a different sport where ALL discussion was centered on how much power you could generate. As long as you're not a tool about it and make claims like, "Well now I'm doing 5 w/kg so I'm sure to win everything in Cat 1s", it is neat to see different trends and hear about people's experience training with power. Interestingly, Drew Ginn (Olympic rower) takes kind of similar approach in his blog and there are very few athletes with his ability in the world - https://drewginn.blogspot.com/2011/01...nal-tt-in.html.
Anyways, my ftp has increased 12%, and my weight has dropped about 2kg. So when you look at w/kg that is a 14% increase. I've been training with power since summer of '09.
Anyways, my ftp has increased 12%, and my weight has dropped about 2kg. So when you look at w/kg that is a 14% increase. I've been training with power since summer of '09.
Last edited by FormerRower; 02-24-11 at 04:10 PM.
02-24-11, 04:42 PM
#28
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I made a lot of progress before the PM but since then FTP is up approximately 20%. That's a bit of a guess since I didn't do an FTP test for a few months. That number comes from PerfPRO.
02-24-11, 07:05 PM
#29
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Just got my SRM back from the service center and today did a 20 minute test, first one since last Fall. I did exactly what you're referring to...killed it in the first 10 minutes and died in the second 10 minutes. I need to do these tests more often, every 4-6 weeks, if for no other reason that to learn to pace myself.
02-24-11, 08:04 PM
#30
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Had a power meter just under a month and I was sick for a week and traveling for a week. So no gains so far as I have yet to do some real testing.
And trainer/roller workouts are even worse because I can't seem to hold even close to the power I hold on the road (based on my limited training with the meter, not based on setting real target ranges).
And trainer/roller workouts are even worse because I can't seem to hold even close to the power I hold on the road (based on my limited training with the meter, not based on setting real target ranges).
02-24-11, 08:40 PM
#31
Because I thought I could
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10% as of last weekend (20' test measured by indoor computrainer + my own powertap) vs the same test protocol start of January. January's number was pretty much the same as from a self-administered road test in September (powertap only) and indoors mid-October followed by weekly indoor sessions and daily commuting. Some proportion of the improvement is better pacing, some is more mental willingness to suffer, and some is real physiological improvement, more thanks to the person who runs the indoor training center than to anything I am doing on my own. I'd say it was approx 4 weeks, maybe 5 weeks into this recent cycle to realize one afternoon something felt different - better. Test a week later confirmed it. We'll see what the numbers look like in another month or so.
And like the flow chart sez, all this really means is it'll take a little longer before I get spat out the back and maybe I can draft my tri-geek friends a bit longer just to bug them.
And like the flow chart sez, all this really means is it'll take a little longer before I get spat out the back and maybe I can draft my tri-geek friends a bit longer just to bug them.
02-24-11, 09:27 PM
#32
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14% improvement since April 2009. Actually had about a 22% improvement, but a bout with pneumonia set me back a little.
02-24-11, 09:49 PM
#33
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I love how ftp becomes a wissing contest. At the training center that I run it is kind of interesting to see how people react...
....ftp is a training tool/concept. You can't win a race with your ftp number - you win it by racing. ftp in a vacuum is a worthless number.
It is when you truly understand this concept that you can actually begin to use power numbers to help you train, and train in the right way in my opinion.
The thing is no matter how much you explain this concept to riders they are still lulled into the e-Wang length contest. This is where I make them hurt:
I set them up on an ftp test first thing. They still believe this is some sort of measure of how good they are as an athlete. They bury themselves. I yell at them and get the most out of every second of the test. They reflect on their numbers afterwards and go off to post it somewhere online I am sure.....
.....then I input that number into the training file that the computrainer uses. Then I make them workout using that number as the baseline. It's then that you see everyone's inner wimp come out. "this is too hard!" - "no it's not. Your load is based on your actual test results just like everyone else and everyone else is doing the workout. You're just mentally weak."
...Then I chuckle inside - knowing that their workout IS hard and that they are getting a good benefit as a result. Making rider's ego's work for them in the long run.
Watching a non-licensed triathlete from my classes destroy cat 2 and 3 animals I have raced or watched race for years is just the icing on the cake.
....ftp is a training tool/concept. You can't win a race with your ftp number - you win it by racing. ftp in a vacuum is a worthless number.
It is when you truly understand this concept that you can actually begin to use power numbers to help you train, and train in the right way in my opinion.
The thing is no matter how much you explain this concept to riders they are still lulled into the e-Wang length contest. This is where I make them hurt:
I set them up on an ftp test first thing. They still believe this is some sort of measure of how good they are as an athlete. They bury themselves. I yell at them and get the most out of every second of the test. They reflect on their numbers afterwards and go off to post it somewhere online I am sure.....
.....then I input that number into the training file that the computrainer uses. Then I make them workout using that number as the baseline. It's then that you see everyone's inner wimp come out. "this is too hard!" - "no it's not. Your load is based on your actual test results just like everyone else and everyone else is doing the workout. You're just mentally weak."
...Then I chuckle inside - knowing that their workout IS hard and that they are getting a good benefit as a result. Making rider's ego's work for them in the long run.
Watching a non-licensed triathlete from my classes destroy cat 2 and 3 animals I have raced or watched race for years is just the icing on the cake.
02-25-11, 08:38 AM
#34
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20% increase in 6 months. I had only been training for 5 months before that. Getting my next 20% gain is going to be a lot harder to accomplish.
02-25-11, 08:40 AM
#35
I eat carbide.
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Can you be my coach? I need somebody (other than my wife) to yell at me because I'm too lazy. Or maybe I just need some faster wheels so I dont need to train so hard .... which brings up the point of that wheel I cant decide about. I guess I should just go for it so I have no excuses huh? What the heck ... just send me the paypal request for the payment ....
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02-25-11, 11:47 AM
#36
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25% increase in FTP since I got my PM 14 months ago. Kind of bogus though since I was not long off a spine injury when I got it.
02-25-11, 12:20 PM
#37
VeloSIRraptor
I've had mine for 8 months, but I haven't been serious about training either.
TT tomorrow, we'll see... it should be right around a 20' effort. (aiming for 22:30 or so?)
TT tomorrow, we'll see... it should be right around a 20' effort. (aiming for 22:30 or so?)
02-25-11, 12:46 PM
#38
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I got mine about last August. I started racing those late season crits after having been off 1.5 years from a spine injury. I'm up about 25% in ftp since then.
