Topic: How To Train With A Power Meter Cycling?
Everything you need to know about “How To Train With A Power Meter Cycling:–from understanding key metrics to learning how to put and maintain your operational threshold.
- A power meter on a mountain bike can be a valuable tool to increase your performance, as long as you are on the right terrain to train a specific metric.
- Many MTB riders are often surprised to use a power meter in their workouts. How can training for power on a mountain bike and a road bike be so different?
- The use of the potentiometer on a mountain bike can be a valuable tool to increase your performance, as long as you’re in the right spot to train a specific metric.
If you do a quick ride or race with a power meter on your road bike, the data collected is valuable. You can see what heart rate power you’ve produced throughout the ride and during key segments of the circuit. All of this information can be used to establish your training zones, training goals and objectives.
Achieving your training goals will go a long way toward reaching your goals or results for the entire season. If you train with a power meter, one of your goals will surely be to improve certain power values of some of your abilities. Let’s take a look at these capabilities.
Training with a power meter is the best way to get the maximum from your coaching time and energy. Unlike core rate-based training, electricity allows us to measure the muscular demands of the effort instead of only the aerobic.
The metrics-based approach to instruction which power supplies is invaluable in helping athletes reach their objectives, but what exactly is it that we need to focus on, and how do we decipher all of the available advice when one needs to know about How To Train With A Power Meter Cycling?
There are a few important places we could direct our attention to start to comprehend the information generated from our electricity meters, and also how to utilize it to inform the choices we make regarding training prescription.
How To Train With A Power Meter Cycling؟
What is a Threshold?
To grasp and employ power metrics into our training we need to understand the basis on which everything is built: threshold. The threshold is simply the most wattage (power) you can sustain while the body can still get rid of the lactic acid being generated by your working muscles.
It’s also the stage at which your body starts to recruit higher amounts of fast-twitch muscle fibre. Working for extended periods above your threshold creates the familiar”burn” from the legs as a consequence of collecting lactic acid. Athletes can boost their body’s lactic acid clearing potential by spending significant time training in particular ranges below and at the threshold.
Timing in these ranges also trains the body to slow the rate of carbohydrate utilization. When you recognize the concept of threshold we can take it a step further with FTP (Functional Threshold Power). FTP is the linchpin of both power-based workouts along with the secret to executing them correctly.
Setting and keeping up FTP
By now you’re no doubt familiar with FTP, how it affects your training approach as well as your overall performance on the bicycle. But, knowing what produces a powerful and accurate FTP, the way to set it, and how to keep it are vital for maintaining your training on track.
Setting your FTP, or rather producing efforts that yield the results you desire, takes some practice and know-how. With tools like TrainingPeaks and WKO4, we can comprehend and analyze power numbers more accurately and consistently than ever before.
With all the tools we have available to us now there are two or three things you’ll want to do and look at to ensure that your FTP is true. The first step would be to produce threshold level attempts in training. The”field test” is a tried and true method, and normally the first step in establishing your FTP.
WARM-UP
20 minutes at endurance speed
3×1 minute high cadence drills at 100 RPM w/ 1minute rest between every
5 minutes at endurance pace
As soon as you’ve completed the FTP test, upload your information and analyze your operation. To compute your FTP take 95 per cent of your 20-minute, all-out effort. This will function as a good approximation of your lactate threshold, and also a solid baseline number for your training.
However, while the field test is a powerful indicator of FTP and a wonderful place to begin, physiological adaptation and functionality are more nuanced than a simple 20-minute evaluation.
The Electricity Duration Curve
WKO4 takes things a step further with the concept of modelled FTP (mFTP), which plots your performances over a curve and creates an mFTP based on historic efforts. Since everyone’s strength isn’t necessarily a 20-minute TT, the PD Curve can be a fantastic way to gain insight into where you are most powerful, and what attempts you may need to concentrate on to elicit critical adaptations.
If you’re using mFTP as well as the PD Curve, it’s ideal to perform all-out attempts of varying durations anywhere from 30 seconds to one hour to get the maximum out of the”curve” When setting any power-based metric, the significance of accurate and valid data can’t be overstated.
Power spikes and incorrect data can drastically impair test outcomes, and can even result in an erroneous FTP or alternative power-derived metrics. Whether you are using the field test, the PD Curve, or even a combination of both, you are going to want to perform FTP level efforts four to six times each year so that your FTP is set correctly at crucial points in the year. It’s tools such as this that make training with electricity so educational!
Training with Power
The main reason that you bought a power meter would be to enhance your practice and improve your fitness. So, how can you go about training with electricity? The variants of workouts that can be achieved are infinite, but there are several key areas that you can concentrate on to elicit the best response.
SWEET SPOT
These efforts are performed at 88 per cent to 94 per cent of your FTP and are a terrific way to strengthen and build your FTP. Typically they are performed earlier in the season, or mid-season to rebuild toward priority races. The whole period of Sweet Spot periods may vary depending upon the athlete, but the goal should be to extend the duration and amount of periods throughout the season.
Establishing Power Zones
Now that you have determined your FTP and understand what you need to maintain a specific threshold, you can calculate your training areas. The areas of the unit derived from energy are what you will use for each training and its driving to decipher which the route is intense and if the planned intention of the route or unit has been carried out. The zones allow you to establish the adequate intensity to induce the adaptation necessary for aerobic, metabolic and muscle development. Energy areas also emphasize the importance of a specific and updated FTP. There are several area structures available for athletes to use, but finally they are detailed and accurate, the areas reflect their physiology. Below you will find an example of seven zone format that can be used:
- Zone 1 Active recovery (AR) = <55% FTP
- Zone 2 Resistance = 56% -75% FTP
- Zone 3 Tempo = 76% -90% FTP
- Zone Lactate Threshold 4 = 91% -105% FTP
- Zone 5 VO2MAX = 106% -120% FTP
- Anaerobic capacity of zone 6 (AC) = 121% -150% FTP
- Zone 7 Neuromuscular power (NP) = maximum power
THRESHOLD-LEVEL
The ability to maintain constant high power values at the lactate threshold is difficult. This effort is the power required to be as competitive as possible in a time trial that lasts about an hour. Some cyclists tend to think that this effort is only necessary for time trials, but it is a common characteristic for all races between 60 and 180 minutes.
You can work your threshold zone with intervals of about 3 to 10 minutes in length, with easy recoveries (approximately 1/4 or 1/3 of the time of the work interval).
To train your threshold zone with the mountain bike, a good stretch of dirt road or relatively smooth track is recommended, where the power values can be more strictly controlled.
Threshold workouts are all meant to directly improve your FTP and need to be performed at 96 per cent to 105 per cent of your FTP. These ought to take you to your limit. Much like Sweet Spot periods, the objective is to increase the duration of time you can spend at this amount. Typically these FTP-specific attempts build the time you have spent training on your Sweet Spot.
STEADY-STATE TEMPO
Controlling the power settings for endurance work on the road and in the mountains is very similar. Over time, you are looking for the highest speed for the least effort. A good way to get the best result is to combine shots based on power zones and heart rate zones. This way you can see when the average power values increase for a given heart rate zone, or when the average heart rate decreases for a given power zone.
For a road competition, the development of the test can be on completely flat terrain, slides or ports. Endurance power demands for flat terrain are slightly different than for hilly terrain. If you have a potentiometer, you already know that the highest power values are usually achieved on uneven terrain.
For a mountain competition, there is always unevenness involved in power values, even for long endurance races. When working on endurance, the challenge on the mountain bike is to select a circuit that is not so hard that you are constantly above your threshold. This is especially important if the purpose of the training is recovery.
Tempo workouts will be the foundation for most cyclists, especially those seeking to increase muscular endurance and/or those training for longer endurance events. Tempo workouts happen between 76 per cent and 88 per cent of FTP and ought to belong to sustained efforts lasting anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours.
VO2MAX
The next capacity is called anaerobic endurance, speed endurance, or VO2max according to the author. These are relatively high average power values, sustainable in a racing situation for about 30 minutes. An interval workout for this ability might be to aim for sustained high power for 3-5 minutes with recoveries equal to the interval time.
It is generally quite easy to find a good segment for mountain biking. The features to look for are:
- Not too steep
- Not so technical as to drive energy needs above this zone
- Offer a good posterior segment to recover
The sensitive point with training in this intensity zone is that you need to be able to control energy production and especially recovery. If the terrain does not allow you to control power or even look at the power meter because you need to keep your eyes on the circuit, then the purpose of the training is lost.
These efforts are often the focus for traditional criterium and road racers seeking to boost sprint and direct outperformance. Lasting from three to eight minutes, they are very challenging and should be planned for so, as they need appropriate recovery upon finishing the workout. Based on the length of the interval, the intensity may range from 105 per cent to 120 per cent of FTP.
Assessing and Tracking Training
Power-based training is only as good as you and/or your coach’s ability to monitor and analyze it! For the benefits of coaching with a power meter, you have to analyze your workouts and chart your progress over time. Again, the attractiveness of training and racing with electricity is that our ability to quantify the hard work and assign values for it. Here some key areas to Concentrate on when it comes to analysis:
Assess your training to measure progress and understand what prescription is crucial to move you toward your goals. How did a particular workout go? How did you believe? Assessing the qualitative with the quantitative is not simply good practice, however, it’s the way you enhance and find out more about yourself as an athlete.
Review race files to understand if your coaching has been impactful. The objective of training for the majority of athletes would be always to prepare for race day. There’s more to race day than simply fitness, but knowing your operation is a start. Take some time to carry out a comprehensive review of races to look for invaluable insights that may help inform your training moving ahead.
Paying careful attention to instruction load, heartbeat and fatigue will make sure you’re not overtraining, and will also help you peak for race day.
They are invaluable for correctly structuring training cubes and being ready for priority races.
Yes, there are a lot of metrics and numbers an athlete can listen to, but here a some of the most important ones:
WATTS PER KILOGRAM (W/KG)
All things equal, the rider with the highest W/Kg will be the quickest. Simply put, it is how much electricity you produce per kilogram of body fat. The greater the number is, the stronger you will be.
It requires carbohydrate-burning energy surges into consideration and so highlights the total fatigue of the ride better than average electricity.
Think about IF as a snapshot of how intense (difficult ) a workout or journey was. You can use this metric to know if your perceived effort matched the actual intensity and if you were on target for the workout.
TSS quantifies how much work has been done, and so how much recovery is needed. Training Stress Score is very important to track over time since it drives both fitness and fatigue, which then tells you the way ready for a race you’re.
PEAK POWER
Tracking your peak power numbers for key durations will help you not only see how you are improving but also make sure your training is matching the demands of your racing. As a guideline, if you are concentrated on shorter and more intense races you should see higher peak powers for shorter durations, and more endurance-focused athletes must focus on more durations.
Training with power, no matter the ride or race is very beneficial to athletes at all levels. The ability to quantify and track efforts, as well as to create individualized coaching prescriptions ensures that you are getting the most out of your training time.
There is a lot that goes into training successfully with a power meter, but in the long run, if you grasp a few basic concepts you’ll be prepared to start. Ensure that your FTP is accurate and have the time to assess and examine both your workouts and races. Successful athletes are always seeking to improve, and training with electricity is the best way to make sure it happens.
People also ask:
Will a power meter improve my cycling?
A power meter is a great tool for all cyclists and triathletes. It teaches you to ride harder, more consistently and enables tracking, planning, and training with a specific focus on your unique needs and goals.
Should I train with a power meter?
To improve your fitness, your body needs the right combination of hard training and recovery. However, without a power meter that provides clear and accurate data, it is very easy to train too hard or too easy to achieve your desired results. Power meters are particularly useful for taking intervals, especially short ones.
How do you train in power zones?
The orientation of this area in training involves short but intense forces of 30 seconds and 2 minutes. Most cyclists say that the first 30 seconds feel manageable before the efforts become harder. It should be allowed many times from 5 to 6 minutes between efforts.
Is 200 watts good cycling?
Most professional cyclists produce around 200 to 300 watts on average during a four-hour tour leg. The recreational cyclist, on the other hand, could only maintain this power during a 45-minute or hour-long spin class. “That’s the great thing about power.
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