Originally Posted by
krazyderek
I have done testing for about 2 years using 2x20min, max 30min all out, graduated MAP test, and last year showed up late for a century and rode the whole thing solo as steady and hard as i could and my power drifted from 300-240w over the course of 4.5 hours for the 160km ride. Smaller time's like 1, 5, and 10 minute critical powers i just draw from races and fast group rides.
The problem is that all these testing's rely on high intensity, the apply a % scale to establish my zones or levels. And all of them say my lv2 should be 160-200w with my HR 130-145, when in fact my HR is always 140-155 for that power range.
Thus i draw my conclusion that my body is simply more used to running on all cylinders so to speak, and is lousy at the lower end aerobic fitness cause i don't have a great deal of it.
My last thought was to try and meet with a sports medicin doctor and have my blood lactose levels measured for different levels and see what that show's.... if my body is pumping out the lactose as soon as i enter lv2 (which i beleive is a physical signal that your body tending to burn more carb's than fat), or if it's fairly typical for a intermediate Cat3.
You have demonstrated one of the pitfalls of training by heart rate. There are way too many variables that can affect heart rate, such as fatigue, caffeine, cadence, stress, etc. You have a power meter; use that to monitor your efforts. I think the heart rate guidelines were included with the power levels only as an after thought.
Also, for a 160 km solo ride, you might try holding a power output in the mid to high end of L2 if you want to ride at a steady pace. This way, your RPE will gradually increase while your power remains steady during the ride, as opposed to RPE remaining constant with your power gradually decreasing.
When I got my PT, I didn't even use the HR strap for the first 18 months.