Power or HR - endurance sessions
YellaBelly
Posts: 130
Morning,
I've started riding with a power meter this winter, and I'm trying to adjust my training accordingly. However, I've been sticking with heart rate for my longer zone 2 endurance sessions, and using average power to determine improvement on those rides.
Is heart rate still the best variable to ride too for those long lower intensities, or should I be riding to power? During those rides my power zone starts off around low zone 4 to keep my HR in the right area, dropping into zone 3 average for the course of 3.5 hours. That's quite a discrepancy so riding to power zone 2 would have me in recovery heart rates.
That said I am due testing next week so that may bring my zones closer together.
Any advice appreciated.
I've started riding with a power meter this winter, and I'm trying to adjust my training accordingly. However, I've been sticking with heart rate for my longer zone 2 endurance sessions, and using average power to determine improvement on those rides.
Is heart rate still the best variable to ride too for those long lower intensities, or should I be riding to power? During those rides my power zone starts off around low zone 4 to keep my HR in the right area, dropping into zone 3 average for the course of 3.5 hours. That's quite a discrepancy so riding to power zone 2 would have me in recovery heart rates.
That said I am due testing next week so that may bring my zones closer together.
Any advice appreciated.
0
Posts
However,
Dont ride to DATA ride to FEEL.
Analyse afterwards.
I struggle with power to keep at a steady state (on longer rides) as my tendency is to go harder on climbs and I end up with a big discrepancy between AP and NP (on a hilly ride there is often 40-50 watts difference) so I know I am not getting a consistent effort which negates the purpose of a longer endurance ride for me.
I personally find RPE the worst metric for me as that (rather than HR) tends to be more susceptible to other factors like general mood.
Over the years I have found that I tend to be able to ride to a given heart rate for a longer period and that overall it just works better for me in terms of improving speed and endurance over longer distances. To give an example I have not ridden to power over the summer, just zone 2&3 HR. I did a 105km loop last week with 1000m of climbing which I last did in April. On my winter bike with a fair headwind for a chunk of the ride I was 3.5km/h faster than earlier in the year which highlights that riding to HR has had some positive impact on my aerobic fitness over the last few months.
For an endurance session I would be looking at power zones 2 and 3, certainly not zone 4 because then it's not really an 'endurance' session any longer.
BTW 3.5 hours in power zone 3 is a pretty epic ride! Even for a fit racer that's a hard ride. I would suggest that you need to test your FTP and set zones accordingly. Sounds like your FTP is currently too low.
Yes I certainly think my FTP needs adjusting. I tested about 9 weeks ago, straight after a layoff from last season. I'd kept active, but wasn't close to being "fit". 9 weeks of training since, I'm expecting (hoping) it's improved.
Thanks for that jrich, it certainly feels like a tough ride! I'm well done in by the time I get home, just hope it shows in my racing this season
Sounds as though either your HR zones were wrong, or your power zones are wrong. Or both.
Yes, you'll be fatigued.