waterrockets 

Yeah, it's possible to see some adaptation in a week. Remember, training makes you weaker, and recovery makes you stronger. If you got a day or two of real recovery, you should expect to be stronger when you get rolling again.

SST is really really efficient for me, and FTP builds quickly. Last winter, I was seeing 10W every 10-15 days for a month.

asgelle

That's not quite right. The adaptations stimulated by training responsible for improved performance will occur with or without recovery. It is possible that the improved performance might be masked by residual fatigue so the improvement will not be evident. Then after some rest, performance improves leading to the mistaken conclusion that the recovery was necessary for the improvement.

sgrundy

Not true. Without adequate recovery performance will just continue to decrease until chronic fatigue sets in. I think what you meant to say is that long blocks of recovery are not necessary for improvement.

triplebutted

No brain
No pain
Its that simple

waterrockets 

asgelle: Good point, it's a sliding scale of training and recovery. Even training 7x/wk, you get recovery between rides, so there will be adaptations. My real point is that a detectable FTP improvement can happen in a short time.

Enthalpic

No, as long as the original stress was of a reasonable magnitude the body will eventually super-compensate. Chronic fatigue will only set in if the athlete follows a program of progressive overload which increases at a rate greater than the ability of the athlete to recover.

Furthermore, do not confuse performance with fitness. A very fit athlete will perform poorly while tired.

Enthalpic

Edited for clarity.

sgrundy

I'm not sure how this is different from what I wrote. If training loads are too high or frequent to allow for adequate recovery between workouts then things will just continue to go downhill, no?

kensuf

Technically yes, but really August and September are the bad months for hurricanes. I rode a century through a tropical storm (Faye) this August with three other lunatics.

asgelle

If you want to say something, say it under your own name. Don't rewrite my post and then attribute it to me. I chose the word performance deliberately. It may have been the right choice, maybe not; but it's what I wrote and I stand behind it.

milliWatts

Does anyone have, or know of, a graph of % LT Power vs. % LT HR?

bdcheung

Varies by person, I would imagine

bravo106

Refer to the 1st chart in Coggan's article that was linked in post #2 (asgelle). As mentioned in the HR Guidelines paragraph, it can only be an approximation, but it'll put you in the ballpark. I'm like you in that I've been doing SST using HR, and that chart is one of my sources of reference.

milliWatts

Thanks. Here's what I got out of it. As bdcheung indicated, individual mileage may vary.

Enthalpic

ok.

umd

TSS in the rain on my new cross bike today. Felt great, had no trouble holding the 90% power level but my overall AP was way down because I didn't count on not being able to see for a long descent and having no power for nearly 10 minutes. Overall I had an IF of .86 for 1:20. I definitely think I'm seeing gains from just a week of SST.

bdcheung

pics?

umd

Edit: I was amazed that I was getting similar speeds for a given power despite a) the tires, b) the extra weight, and c) the wet conditions. The bike felt very nice but I've never ridden a bike with such different geometry before and the stability was really strange. It resited turning into corners; I had to really fight it at times.

LT Intolerant

Steve that's a killer IF for a 1:20 ride outdoors. Where were you riding? Elings?

umd

No, I rode Foothill -> Mountain -> Cold Springs -> Sycamore Canyon -> Cabrillo -> State. I'm thinking my FTP may already be higher and the IF is overstated. I was speed limited on Mountain, and I didn't pedal at all on Cold Springs or Sycamore. The lights along State also really mess up a steady pace

milliWatts

As a newcomer (to TTing) I'm picking up on some really positive energy from everyone here. Seems as if the amateur TT "community" has a much more laid-back, ride-your-own-race attitude than I experienced as a crit racer. Back when I used to race them (90s) the scene was filled with holier-than-thou prima donnas; it was a major turnoff to potential newcomers.

LT Intolerant

You are still my idol for being man enough to ride out there in the downpour and through the burn areas. Maybe your IF was high because you're drilling it to stay ahead of the mud slides!

vladav

That may have been me. I read somewhere on CyclingForums that during the Base/Build (clearly not on the approach to peak) that 1hour of SST roughly amounts to a 1watt FTP gain.

+ for Larger riders, - for smaller.

So far that formula has added up for me.
'07-'08: built from 198FTP to 260FTP (167lbs to 153lbs). Stopped riding/racing April to August (new house)
Oct4th '08-present: 210ftp to 237ish (169lbs to 157lbs) 28hoursSST = 27wFTPgain. 55hours total, avgIF0.859

umd

Thanks. I'll have to see how it works out for me long term. So far I've done about 4 hours of SST since I tested my FTP last week.

milliWatts

When you say you've done 4 hours of SST, does that mean you were actually in your SS for that amount of time?