Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger: Power:weight

[Aaron]

Hey all..

I found this lil' diddy on the world wide web.

Its a tabulation of average power:weight ratios.

5s: refers to maximum sustained wattage/kg for a 5 second duration etc..

FT: refers to 'functional threshold'. w/kg for an extended period.
(this is the most important value for the XC/roadie)

From what ive pieced together over the last couple years, the XC -> roadie categorization is approximately:

Cat 5 = beginner
Cat 4 - 5 = beginner/sport
Cat 3 - 4 = sport
Cat 2 - 3 = expert
Cat 2 = expert/elite
Cat 1 = elite

This of course is based entirely on cardio ability.

Those of you who did the study with Jason should find this real handy.

[Bayden]

if what i hear is true, then the top entry in the Functional threshold column corresponds exactly to lance armstrong's.

[Z]

The ratio of power to weight shown really comes into play when climbing hills. The best climbers have high power to weight ratios. This does not necessarily mean that they are the strongest; it means that they are the strongest per unit of weight. Good climbers (high power to weight ratio cyclist) expend less energy than some one who is heavier than them while climbing at the same pace because they are lifting less weight.

On the flats the power to weight ratio is less important because you are not lifting your body weight. As such, a heavier cyclist on the flats who puts out more Watts than a lighter cyclist is faster because the two cyclists are not lifting their bodies’ weight in the process.

If you’re ever in Ottawa you’ll notice that lots of the A crit riders won’t do the A loop despite the fact they did really well in the crit. The loop is very hilly and the two events run on alternating weeks. The reason they don’t show up to the loop is because they can’t climb despite being stronger than the lighter guys. I think this illustrates the whole principle quite well.

[Bayden]

I only tried a few B crits late in the summer so never had a chance to go to the A, but are you sure its on a different course? the seenite website only has one course-map, the one we used for B and what i presumed was used for the A race as well. do you have a link/info on where the A course is then? still in the NRC compound?

but there definitely were lots of huge guys in the B crits.

[t]

although this chart is all fine and dandy ... if you want to keep your moral up ... don`t refer to it! hahaha.

Cyclingpeaks WKO+ in conjunction w/ most power meters (ergomo, powertap, SRM etc...) will spit out a handy dandy little power profile. Basically takes the last 28 days (or however many days you wish) tabulates your max 5s, 1min, 5min, FTP etc... and then places you on the graph that Aaron posted.

without boring you all with the numbers ... humble pie was served earlier this summer when I started to use the aforementioned program.

But seriously, if you want to create a dirty training plan (and dirty here means good) then hook yourself up w/ a power device (i like SRM or Powertap ... but SRM is ridiculously expensive so... powertap for ) and spend a little extra on cyclingpeaks WKO+ (you only really need that program). If you are a nerd for numbers you will have a field day ... it is one of the neatest programs out there ... hands down!

I would highly recommend having trained w/ HR or just perceived exertion first ... the whole get to know your body w/out numbers thing ... but ... damn its fun. Cant say all the money has made me faster but ... did i mention its cool?

[Z]

Power is a far more efficient method of training than heart rate because you can be a lot more accurate with your training zones. With heart rate most people end up not working hard enough so improvements do come but at a much slower rate. I used to use heart rate but then I made the switch to power and I started to make gains a lot quicker. Some high end gyms offer training zone assessment which helps a lot.

Buying a power tap and getting a wheel built sucks but it is the most effective use of money when you are looking at putting money into bike. You can get a fancier/lighter groupset and some sexy wheels and save 2 pounds but training with power will let you off set that 2 pound difference and then some.

The down side to power is you have to ride your training zones and you can't slack off.

[t]

well ... the upside to the zones is that when you are supposed to do recovery ... you REALLY recover.

I was out the other day on a recovery ride and no lie, got passed by an old guy (like well over 60 ... easy) on a cruiser. I mean, seriously, he was jamming but ... i had to hold back and not attack. So, a powertap/srm/ergomo etc ... all let you ride so damn slow it could possibly be embarassing.

[Z]

t said:

I was out the other day on a recovery ride and no lie, got passed by an old guy (like well over 60 ... easy) on a cruiser. I mean, seriously, he was jamming but ... i had to hold back and not attack. So, a powertap/srm/ergomo etc ... all let you ride so damn slow it could possibly be embarassing.

I didn't realize that I was supposed to race everyone all the time.