How has power meter use changed your training & performance?

Herbsman

How has your training changed since you started using a power meter? What do you do differently now?

Has your racing performance improved as a result?

mamba80

Biggest difference twas finding out how easy i was taking it after cresting hills- i thought i was really on it - pushing hard but the pm dispelled that notion
Downside is that sometimes takes away the pure fun of riding - so its nice to bin it now and then, cycling has to be more than numbers hasnt it?
Spend too much time on a PC as well.....

GiantMike

I use mine to analyse the stresses of racing and to train for them. I think it also makes me train more, but as I can't prove a negative I can't say if this is completely true.

It's also made me realise that training makes the most difference to performance and that buying more kit makes relatively little difference.

springtide9

Made a huge difference over the summer, even without any structured training,

People talk about "feel" or "perceived effort", but my brain doesn't seem to work like that... when it starts to hurt, my brains tells me to back off and I still think in my head I'm pushing hard.

With the PM, it lets me know when I'm properly trying, as well as when I'm backing off (even though my brain tells me otherwise). I found that once I started to understand what power I could hold for specific period of time, I'd force myself into keeping up the effort, as I knew I was capable of doing it.

danowat

Changed the way I train?, no, not really, my training is still essentially the same.

Changed how I train?, a fair bit to be honest, based on data (HR, speed on my usual routes etc), pre-power meter, all my easy(er) rides were done WAY to hard, and all my hard(er) rides, weren't done hard enough.

With a power meter there is no confusion, I know exactly where I am training, and using post race data evaluation, I can see where I went wrong (or potentially wrong).

I can train much more effeciently, and with much more precision now than pre-power meter.

bigpikle

for sure - until you use a PM you have no idea how much time you actually spend at low or very low power outputs, even if PE or HR might still suggest you're working hard...

I find the PM really helps keep me honest and makes sure I really work at the levels I want to target throughout the session, so from that poit of view it has changed the way I train as I am 100% sure I get better sessions done than I would have done without the objective data.

I also enjoy seeing the numbers in sessions where I want to really push myself. Seeing the numbers during a session really helps me stay on it, push myself harder and sometimes gives me that extra bit of motivation to stick at it and set a PB etc, when thats what I'm aiming for.

jezzpalmer

springtide9 wrote:

People talk about "feel" or "perceived effort", but my brain doesn't seem to work like that... when it starts to hurt, my brains tells me to back off and I still think in my head I'm pushing hard.

With the PM, it lets me know when I'm properly trying, as well as when I'm backing off (even though my brain tells me otherwise). I found that once I started to understand what power I could hold for specific period of time, I'd force myself into keeping up the effort, as I knew I was capable of doing it.

That's pretty much spot on for me.

However I think there are times where I might just play it safe and stick at FTP up a big climb knowing that I can do it, when I could potentially go a bit harder.
That said I did two rides in the last week with a new long steady climb I'd not done before (always descended it), and raised my 20min ave both times. I've got the bit between my teeth at the minute, started my Dragon ride training early.

I'm sure it upsets some purists/luddites/naysayers, but that's their problem rather than mine.

Herbsman

I forgot to ask, has your racing performance improved as a result of being able to measure and analyse your efforts during training and racing?

danowat

Hard to say, but all my longer TT's (50, 100 & 12hr) have been paced much more effectively with power

kamil1891

At the moment, I am starting to train properly with PM for next season, previous months were to get to know how it works, get the feeling of power, reading the book about training with power etc.

However, I did one race in cat 4, that was my first and last race this season :oops: but by knowing roughly what my FTP is I could stay at the front for 95% of the crit and set a pace and then just go for a sprint to win. Riders behind were happy to have someone "dumb" to do the hard work on the front but they certainly didn't realise my advantage there, not to say that I was in the best position for the sprint as well I don't think I would be able to do that based on PE. More likely I would have blown up early. I was riding right on a border line. However, the biggest shame was that I forgot to save the file to further evaluate the race and power outputs... But at least the win made me happy

I hope that's only the beginning of my training and racing with the PM.

mattshrops

It feels as if my training is now much more methodical and accurate.
I know exactly how much(or little) effort i am making.
I now know exactly how many calories i have burnt and has helped me lose more weight.
I'm hopefully managing my training load and periodising by using TSS.

Ask me about my performance in the summer.