Originally Posted by
Hida Yanra
1. When you say one-sided, I'm assuming you mean "other than crank/chain/hub based devices" or am I missing something? 'cause those are in one location, but measure total force. Just making sure I am tracking with you.
2. The L/R balance especially gets dicey when dealing with short durations. Several tests on elite level track riders (generally smooth as far as pedaling goes) show that not only is balance not equal, it varies based on duration. I don't have the results in front of me, but I recall that balance on efforts under 4-5 minutes varied quite a bit, and it wasn't until longer durations +5' that the power smoothed out.
Most pros- especially on the Team Sky model of racing- are largely training for durations that are quite a bit than the ones I prioritize. (mountains, long cross-wind sections, etc), but amateurs are often training these 30"-5' durations that are fundamental to winning a 45' crit, making the selection in a hilly RR, etc.
Were we (as a generalized set of racers) more prone to +4h races with multiple +15' climbs, etc... yeah, I expect we'd spend quite a bit more time on steady power to the pedals- but given the bread-and-butter of American bike racing are crits (short), or road races decided by specific moments of selection and no sustained efforts over 10-15'... I'm not terribly compelled by a device that is most certainly inaccurate at the durations critical to my racing results.
1 - Devices that only measure one legs output (which I believe atm is only Stages) which replaces the left crank with a model that has a strain gauge.
2 - You're right, it isn't really effective when you look at L/R in the short term, and for an uninjured athlete its not too functional of a statistic. Whatever side you make your jump on in sprints is going to be the dominant one by far, and most of us favor one side. For example, I typically use my left when starting at a stoplight or pedaling after cruising on a descent.
For me, I monitor it as my SI Joint slips out of place and the L/R changes. If its Right dominant I know its slipped out and I have to pop it back in place (which fortunately seems to occur less often). I have mine set at 30 second average and have to monitor it over a steady effort of about 5 minutes.