Originally Posted by
wanders
That was the reason I was asking about NP to begin with. Looking at AP, the numbers fall in line but every time you throw anything in front of me greater than a 2% grade, I have to pull almost 200% FTP just to drag my 200# over with the group. (short but pitchy hills) This really skews my numbers. I was wondering if anyone else has this happen.
I'm a NP monster and an AP kitten.
As I understand it, NP is an approximation of the physiological equivalent average power over a given duration. The calculation is certainly overstating the equivalent AP for some and understating it for others. Sounds like your average power equivalent (NP) is possibly being overstated.
For me, the real question would be which one to base your FTP and zones on. I'm no expert, but I would probably adjust my FTP up if I was doing 1.0+ IF rides at 1 hour or longer based on NP. If your zones feel reasonable based on that, I'd try to come up with a good repeatable test based on NP going forward. You might try posting on the google wattage forum, there are some pretty knowlegeable folks there.