forrest_m

Yeah, I guess that's why knowing the course is an advantage... if the climb had been half a mile shorter, I probably would have been close enough to catch back on on the descent, in which case letting them go early would have been a mistake.

I think you're right, I just wonder if a month is really enough time to make a significant increase in FTP at this point in the season. (I suppose I can at least try not to get *slower* between now and then). I only asked because I've found that I tend to train up in the shorter intervals relatively quickly, I feel like I could make a bigger change there in the time I have. But you're probably right that it won't solve my problem. Just hoping for a loophole in the laws of physics, basically.

On the plus side, got golden cheetah working on my mac today, so I can start tracking my bike score/tss.

Electric_Elvis

Bump, anybody....any ideas?

ridethecliche

Can you import them and the click on them while holding ctrl?

Maybe you can do multiple that way.

merckx89

I remember doing a bulk import of files and just selecting the folder they were in, but do not remember exactly how.

Another question. Say you go swimming for an hour, your heart rate is going to be higher than the equivalent work on the bike because you use more muscles swimming. Now would one hour at threshold swimming give you the same TSS as one hour at threshold on the bike? It seems like swimming would give you more because you can't go for as long when you're swimming.

merckx89

To export them you can highlight them all and select export for all of them, but you still have to do each one "individually" as in enter the info for each one separately. I thought you were talking about importing into WKO at first.

umd

I don't know about the poweragent side but if you can do a bulk export, then you can select all the files in explorer and drag them into the wko window.

Flatballer

So I see that I can't do a MAP test since I only have rollers and no trainer. Is this because I would likely fall over from the effort?

I was planning on using the MAP to test FTP, but I guess I'll need to use something else. What would be the next best option? 20 minute TT?

waterrockets 

Unless your rollers can get up over your expected MAP, there's not enough resistance. Oh, and yeah, you'll probably crash. One of my training partners almost crashed on a trainer at the end of his MAP.

Flatballer

Ah, ok. So it's the resistance problem. Plus the crashing problem, and I probably would. I weave when I get on it hard. My body doesn't weave, but my bike moves under me. Like sprinting, but not.

So I've read that MAP plus a 20 min TT or something is the best way to estimate without actually doing a 1 hour TT.

Seeing that I don't have a trainer (I guess I could borrow one for just the MAP test, but I wouldn't do it regularly), what would be the next best test(s) to do? Average of two 2x20 TT efforts, combined with a Monod?

How rested should I be? Could I do both a Monod and a 2x20 TT effort tomorrow? I'd like to get my FTP nailed down as soon as possible so that the training actually means something to me.

waterrockets 

Well, if your anaerobic skills* are developed, the all-out 3' critical power test is a straightforward approach. For those who actually hit it hard enough and stick it out, it's a really good estimate, and only takes 3'.

*I'm not talking about talent or ability here: just your skills at going all-out and sticking with it. Not as easy as it sounds. Yeah, and what you think it might be like, it's worse than that. No. Still worse. Yeah, now you're getting close, but probably wthout the blood and ambulance.

Flatballer

But I don't wanna. I'm a wuss.

Flatballer

Maybe I'll try it tomorrow, since it seems accurate and rest doesn't seem to affect it much. Am I gonna fall off my bike and get hit by a car?

I guess I'll find a nice open stretch of road with no cars around, so I don't have to worry about holding my line.

Flatballer

It does sound pretty simple, which I like. No pacing required. Just sprint and then keep pushing as hard as I can for 3 minutes, simple, right?

waterrockets 

Yep. Just keep going as hard as you can. The last 40 seconds really isn't that bad. You don't have enough strength to cause pain

Flatballer

Well, I failed again at the 3 minute all out test. I gave up after 90 seconds when I just couldn't take it and I wasn't liking my numbers.

Entire workout (134 watts):
Duration: 1:13:50 (1:33:06)
Work: 592 kJ
TSS: 110.5 (intensity factor 0.948)
Norm Power: 190
VI: 1.42
Pw:HR: n/a
Pa:HR: n/a
Distance: 18.83 mi




Looks like I was starting to flatten out around 220W, which is where I was thinking my FTP might be.
I think I might go with 220 as my FTP, and just start doing workouts based on that. Sound reasonable?

My IF has been very high the last two days. .967 yesterday and .948 today, which is leading me to the conclusion my FTP is definitely low. Yesterday was SST, and today was basically just cruising combined with the 3 min test. I mostly just took it easy though except for hills.

bcellis

Cross-posted from the Wattage group:

I recently did a climbing TT and the average power was significantly lower than I expected, especially based on the results. About 6 weeks ago my buddies and I did a trial run on the course as a baseline of our fitness/power and prep for the race. Here are my stats from that ride:


Date: Mid-May
Distance: 12.4 miles
Time: 1:02:11
Average Power: 314 watts
Weight: 185 lbs



Those numbers seem accurate and the average power (FTP?) was validated in a time trial a couple weeks later. Last weekend was the race and here are the stats from that ride (same course, same conditions, all-out effort, etc... the biggest thing was I had done significant training for the event as well as having dropped ~7 lbs since the baseline test 6 weeks prior):



Date: June 28
Distance: 12.4 miles
Time: 0:54:43
Average Power: 296 watts (???)
Weight: 179 lbs



Seems to me that the average power from the race is a bit low (maybe a zero-offset issue?). I'm not sure how the numbers correlate because of the weight loss (185 lbs -> 179 lbs) but based on training and recent rides, I expected my average power to be somewhere around 320ish.



Oh, another data point: a buddy who weighs the same (but has a slightly lighter bike, maybe 1-1.5 lbs at most) put down a 0:59:XX at 305 watts avg (measured by Powertap)... not sure how well he did/didn't pace though.


Just wondering if some of the more experienced and knowledgeable folks here have any input... does the 296 watts average power sound like an accurate number?



Assuming it was some kind of zero-offset error, anyone care to hazard a guess as to what my avg power would/should have been?

Flatballer

Why is my PT download reporting different values from my head unit?

Example: yesterday I did 70 miles according to the head unit. The download said 62 miles. It was also missing about 15 minutes of data. It had my top speed listed as 26 mph, even though I was averaging over 35 for some long descents.

ridethecliche mentioned it might not be saving data while coasting, which seems to make sense. Averaging 30 mph for 15 minutes of descent would be 7.5 miles that are missing. I looked in my booklet, and didn't find any setting about this. Is this a setting that I can get rid of? Missing data just because I'm coasting seems kind of messed up.

I don't see anything in the Saris FAQ about this problem. I'll e-mail them Monday if I haven't figured it out by then.

Thanks.

bostongarden

Ok, I have my srm data from a race today, but, my warmup and post race data are in the downloaded file as well. Is there a straight forward way to isolate just the race data so that I may analyze it? I have the SRM software and the trial version of WKO+. The way some folks have written about WKO+, I'm guessing it might be easier with this program. Thanks!!!!

Jynx

you have the option to record whenever speed is measured or whenever heart rate is measured so it will definately record whle coasting. sounds like a data drop issue.

Flatballer

But how does it drop data, while getting the data to the head unit? I thought if it was dropping data it wouldn't get anything at all.

The head unit has all the info, but it doesn't download it.

Jynx

are you using poweragent or WKO+? I have found poweragent to differ from the head unit but not as much as you are experiencing.

Flatballer

Wko+.

Jynx

im out of ideas.

Flatballer

Well, I changed it back to 1 second recording, and during my 2 hour ride today it was almost perfect. It was different by about 10 seconds over 2 hours. Avg power the same, avg cadence the same, avg speed the same, distance off by a couple hundredths of a mile.

Seems like whatever the problem is, it has something to do with 2 second recording.

Is there a way to fix the total data from my last two rides? It's making my mileage and time and TSS for the week read low. Probably not a big deal, but I'm a perfectionist.

ridethecliche

If you still have the files on the head unit:

1) Try dling them using the poweragent software.
2) Then import to WKO.


See if that works. Sometimes I have to do that with the SRM software, especially if WKO+ is timing out on the DL. My cable is dying, but it isn't an issue with the SRM software since it doesn't time out.