Big fat winter power training thread
Comments
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chrisw12 wrote:Bhima wrote:4.797 W/Kg
How predictatable. :roll:
Who'd have guessed that Bhima would (make up) the highest figure on this thread.
I disagree. Given that he's quoted the figure to 3 decimal places it must have been measured very precisely. Why on earth would anyone doubt him?
More problems but still living....0 -
58585 wrote:How about a training progress thread based on power?
LT W/kg each month through to spring. Not really fussed how people are testing, no prizes here so just keep it consistent!
Name-SeptW/kg-OctW/kg-NovW/kg-DecW/kg-JanW/kg-FebW/kg-MarW/kg
58585-4.1
What is being measured for this. Average watts over an hour, 10 minutes or 1 minute. If either the latter 2, is there a specification for effort beforehand, eg ride normal for 10 minutes then attempt effort.
many thanksThe ultimate cruelty of love's pinions0 -
Current Functional Threshold (1-hr TT) Power estimate: 280W: 3.5-3.6 W/kg
Maximal Aerobic Power: 410W (Aug 2009)
3km pursuit power: 375W (Oct 2009)
Looking to nudge FTP towards 3.8W/kg over balance of year leading up to paracycling track nats in February 2010.0 -
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I got tested in july at Greenwich Uni in Medway when they were standard testing the new watt bike.
My figures were
V02 max of 61
5.3 W/kg.
Can't remember my LT will have to dig it out.
Im 5' 10" and 178 lb, is this good ?0 -
Being 5'10" or 178lb?dmclite wrote:Im 5' 10" and 178 lb, is this good ?0 -
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Alex_Simmons/RST wrote:
Being 5'10" or 178lb?dmclite wrote:Im 5' 10" and 178 lb, is this good ?
Hee hee, bet you're a riot at parties.... 0 -
ShockedSoShocked wrote:Bhima wrote:4.797 W/Kg
Is this your power to weight? How did you get the numbers?
Used someone's Powertap wheel and went hard for 1 hour.
278 W / 57.95 Kg = 4.7970 -
If this really is your power at FTP then that is very impressive considering the training you mentioned you were doing elsewere on this forum.Bhima wrote:4.797 W/Kg
Now for the (purely) theory part, assuming that with proper training you could gain 12% in FTP power by next spring that alone would put you up to 5.4W/Kg which is sky high. Most cyclists could also trim down a little, so lets say that you could lose 5% of your bodyweight this brings you to 5.65W/Kg which is staggering.
Bhima, please tell us your;
1) Age?
2) Weight, are you as thin as the pros and do you think you could lose a few pounds?
3) How long you have been cycling?
4) How you measured power?
I strongly suspect that 4.8W/Kg at FTP is incorrect and much higher than what you are really at.
EDIT: Just saw your above reply. I am convinced that the powertap wheel needs calibrated. If you just rode hard for one hour then it is likely that your true FTP is higher than the ride you did with the powertap.
Murr X0 -
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That's a very good p/w - you should seriously consider racing if you're not doing so already. Time trials, road races, crits, whatever floats your boat.Bhima wrote:Used someone's Powertap wheel and went hard for 1 hour.
278 W / 57.95 Kg = 4.797
To give you an idea, I won the British TT champs (masters) this year with almost an identical (powertap measured) one-hour p/w. And you've probably got plenty of improvement potential.Jeff Jones
Product manager, Sports0 -
Would I be right in saying that the power that Bhima is alleging is nothing special (only time I had this measured mine was similar), its the absurdly low weight that makes it seem impressive?
So Bhima, do you really weigh 58kg and if so are you 4'6" tall?More problems but still living....0 -
Have you not lost a signficant amount of weight over a relatively short period of time in which case I would have thought this would have a negative impact on your short term power (until you could build it again)?
I don't suppose you have the data downloaded in which case you could put up the graph or better still export the data to csv and upload it? If those were my figures I'd have them up on every site going
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Bhima wrote:ShockedSoShocked wrote:Bhima wrote:4.797 W/Kg
Is this your power to weight? How did you get the numbers?
Used someone's Powertap wheel and went hard for 1 hour.
278 W / 57.95 Kg = 4.797
I know you were quite slim when I saw you last, but seriously - 58KG? I don't think so.0 -
I can relate to Bhima since I'm also 58kg. Last time I did a test it was a 10 mins (ish) to exhaustion on an ergometre (proper university test). They measured my deflection point at 240watts and 170bpm. My max was 194 and, i think , 350ish but i don't have it in front of me. Works out at 4.1 at threshold, though I can ride a 25 at 175ish.
So, you've got me beat, but then again i seriously doubt that you're 46. 0 -
Once again Bhima saves a thread. What started as a dull thread, becomes entertaining and fantastic once the genius posts.
So, 278w for a hour in a race during the season by an experienced racer would be a good figure. 278 for someone who's never raced and produced this on their first attempt and not done during an adrenaline fuelled race is pretty outstanding. Throw in a light weight (measured to 2d.p no less) and we're talking potential world class.0 -
chrisw12 wrote:Once again Bhima saves a thread. What started as a dull thread, becomes entertaining and fantastic once the genius posts.
So, 278w for a hour in a race during the season by an experienced racer would be a good figure. 278 for someone who's never raced and produced this on their first attempt and not done during an adrenaline fuelled race is pretty outstanding. Throw in a light weight (measured to 2d.p no less) and we're talking potential world class.
Must be all that honey.http://www.ledomestiquetours.co.uk
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Oh geez... :roll:
OK, time to clear a few things up and answer some questions...
I weighed that much on average on the day I got tested. In 24 hours, my weight fluctuated from 57 to 62 kilos, but mainly stayed down around 58, hence the really skewed average. I thought i'd use an average figure, as it's probably closer to the real-life figure when i'm out riding.
I'm 21, been riding for 18 months, although only had a proper road bike for 10 months. Those first 8 months of riding a horrible hybrid were painful though. I'd go out and suffer for an hour day in day out as I was trying to lose fat ASAP.
I have lost quite a lot of weight very fast and am actually trying to put a bit more on because I look dangerously thin. I'm currently taking a week off actually, to see what happens... I eat a LOT usually, so i'm going to have to significantly up the food intake in future if I want to simply maintain this weight, as it seems what i've been on in the past has not been enough. :shock: (You should see how much Nutella sandwiches I go though on a ride. Seriously, you wont believe me if I told you.)
The test was on my bike, on a mate's trainer. I basically got on the train to his house, swapped wheels and he fiddled with a few buttons. He told me to ride as hard as I could for 1 hour, which was difficult because i'd never used an indoor trainer before. Ended up going through about 3 litres of fluid during it! After more fiddling about, he put those numbers into the calculator and that was that.
I'm not too sure what "Power at FTP" means Murr X. This was my first "proper" power test and I didn't even do the calculations, so i'm kind of new to all the technical terms... I'll contact the guy and see if he still has the data.
Chris - there was quite a lot of adrenaline going on actually. A few of his drunken mates were round and aimed a lot of screaming my way while they impatiently waited for the footie to start. :?
I'm doing some testing for some sports science students in a few months at the local UNI and they tell me that a power test will be part of that. I'm sure that they'll be doing everything very precisely. When it happens, i'll post the results here.
Also - am I supposed to factor in the weight of equipment/clothing/bike/etc? This is without all that, yet it's all weight that's getting pushed up the hills...0 -
Pokerface wrote:
I know you were quite slim when I saw you last, but seriously - 58KG? I don't think so.
I was wearing the same clothing I bought in February, which is now very very baggy and makes me look bigger. I had to ditch it recently, as it was flapping about in the wind far too much.0 -
See here:Bhima wrote:I'm not too sure what "Power at FTP" means Murr X.
http://alex-cycle.blogspot.com/2008/05/ ... -sins.html0 -
Alex_Simmons/RST wrote:maintain in a quasi-steady state without fatiguing
I was really fatigued in the last 5 minutes. I'd overcooked the pacing so was just trying to hang on for dear life while drunken men screamed at me.
It was also not steady. I pushed harder and harder, slowly ramping up for the first 20 minutes (not by much though).
Would this mean the FTP figure is different to my recorded figure?
I was told to go as hard as possible for the hour. That is exactly what I did, because I could NOT cycle AT ALL after the hour, but managed to finish the test. I had no idea it was supposed to be steady though. :?0 -
Bhima, its very important not to vary the pace greatly, if it was not a steady effort then it would have been much higher if it were steady. Did you use a powerful fan or two and did it keep you cool enough? If you were too hot then this will have reduced power output.
FTP will be probably considerably higher if the effort was steady, these reasons are why I strongly suspect that the figure of 278W is incorrect and perhaps even 100W above what your actually produced during that particular effort. What did your friend think of the power you were producing and what can he do for one hour?
If it were the true figure then you do have exceptional potential and could be near top professional level with proper training in a matter of months. For instance very few high level riders with FTPs of well over 5W/Kg could have put out that power to weight during similar circumstances, so you can see why we are somewhat skeptical.
If you can get the power data from that ride then please do upload it on here as some of us love to see that kind of technical data and could help you.
Looking forward to hearing your replies Bhima.
Thanks0 -
Murr X wrote:Did you use a powerful fan or two and did it keep you cool enough? If you were too hot then this will have reduced power output.
Turbo trainer was outside in the cold. The freezing cold. I couldn't handle the heat, you see. I was very uncomfortable so constantly poured water over myself to keep my temperature as close to "normal" riding conditions as possible. Others were pouring water on me too. My bike got a good clean from it all. I was looking at the hose-pipe and getting ideas towards the end of the hour, but I didn't have to go that far. There was a fan too, so it felt just like normal riding after a bit.Murr X wrote:perhaps even 100W above what your actually produced during that particular effort.
Can it vary by that much? :shock:Murr X wrote:you can see why we are somewhat skeptical.
I can now. I don't really know what is considered "good" with p/w ratios though. What are the pro climbers putting out? I just read that Pantani (convicted doper) got to above 7, but can't really find stats anywhere on this for others...Murr X wrote:What did your friend think of the power you were producing and what can he do for one hour?
He said that his was around 4.1 W / Kg. I asked him what my numbers meant and he couldn't really put it in to perspective but said it was "understandable" because we seem to be equal on the flat sprints, but I always beat him up hills. He put out a slightly higher wattage than me (can't remember exactly what), but he weighs a bit more.0 -
ShockedSoShocked wrote:The results showed I had a power to weight of 5.7w/kg, a Vo2 of 70ml/kg/min. I ended the test early however (only reached 185bpm for my heart rate)
How long did you go for?
I'd imagine you could get massive figures by doing the effort for shorter times. The p/w ratio for a sprint must be through the roof, for example.0 -
Bhima wrote:ShockedSoShocked wrote:The results showed I had a power to weight of 5.7w/kg, a Vo2 of 70ml/kg/min. I ended the test early however (only reached 185bpm for my heart rate)
How long did you go for?
I'd imagine you could get massive figures by doing the effort for shorter times. The p/w ratio for a sprint must be through the roof, for example.
Till exhaustion (or i was supposed to). Like I said it was more to when I felt too uncomfortable to continue. I may have worked it out wrong (as is more likely)."A cyclist has nothing to lose but his chain"
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Well pacing doesn't have to be perfectly even, and there are ways to assess how variable it was or indeed if a higher power may have been possible. But we can't do that assessment without the power meter file itself.Bhima wrote:Alex_Simmons/RST wrote:maintain in a quasi-steady state without fatiguing
I was really fatigued in the last 5 minutes. I'd overcooked the pacing so was just trying to hang on for dear life while drunken men screamed at me.
It was also not steady. I pushed harder and harder, slowly ramping up for the first 20 minutes (not by much though).
Would this mean the FTP figure is different to my recorded figure?
I was told to go as hard as possible for the hour. That is exactly what I did, because I could NOT cycle AT ALL after the hour, but managed to finish the test. I had no idea it was supposed to be steady though. :?
Next time, try one of these tests with a calibrated and zeroed power meter and post the file along with your body mass:
http://www.cyclecoach.com/index.php?opt ... Itemid=1120 -
Bhima wrote:I weighed that much on average on the day I got tested. In 24 hours, my weight fluctuated from 57 to 62 kilos, but mainly stayed down around 58, hence the really skewed average.
Your weight fluctuated by 5 kilos during 24 hours? I could understand that if you weighed 18 stone but not considering that you claim to weigh 9 stone?!http://www.ledomestiquetours.co.uk
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mrc1 wrote:Bhima wrote:I weighed that much on average on the day I got tested. In 24 hours, my weight fluctuated from 57 to 62 kilos, but mainly stayed down around 58, hence the really skewed average.
Your weight fluctuated by 5 kilos during 24 hours? I could understand that if you weighed 18 stone but not considering that you claim to weigh 9 stone?!
Agreed. 5 kilos is 12 pounds (or almost a full stone!). In order to lose that kind of weight in one day, you'd have to oversaturate yourself with food and water in the morning, and then ride all day, not taking on board anything - to the point of exhaustion and dehydration.
It is possible to have that type of weight difference over a few day period of a few days, but not in one day.
Or unless you have a bad crash and lose about 4 litres of blood.0
