Power/Weight Thread

[xdcx]

I thought a specific thread for logging weight/power profiles and discussing FTP/power training would be very beneficial for everyone. So here it is!

People can use this to regularly update their weight loss/gain and update their power profile info when they re-test regularly. The post below this contains members data, if you post your data/update data I will put it in the post below so it's all on one area of the thread.

For posting your details lets try and keep it standardised to the following. You can post less/more but * items are required -


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*Username -
Age -
*Height - FT/INCH
*Weight - KG
*FTP (60min) -
CP (20min) -
5min -
1min -
5sec -
1sec -
Gear - Stages, Garmin Vector, Powertap, Wattbike for example.
Info - Use info to say if it was a specific test, or taken from race data etc. Done on a hilly route, during a TT etc. Also use this for general stuff like info on weight loss/gain or lack of training/injury if you would like to.

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[xdcx]

** OcUK - Members Power Profiles **


Username - xdcx
Age - 29
Height - 5ft 8in
Weight - 60.5KG
FTP (60min) - 280w FTP W/KG - 4.59
CP (20min) - 342w CP W/KG - 5.65
5min - 383w
1min - 466w
5sec - 878w
1sec - 1006w
Gear - Garmin Vector with Garmin Edge 810.
Info - 60min from turbo session (06/03/17). 20min taken from a 20min test on a climb (11/04/16).

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Username - Thomas. PLease.
Age - 28
Height - 5ft 10in
Weight - 81KG
FTP (60min) - 339w FTP W/KG - 4.18
CP (20min) - 357w CP W/KG - 4.40
5min - 432w
1min - 717w
5sec - 1333w
1sec - 1421w
Gear - Power2Max with Garmin Edge 810.
Info - FTP info all taken from race or TT data.

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Username - Berger
Age -
Height - 6ft 2in
Weight - 80KG
FTP (60min) - 330w FTP W/KG - 4.12
CP (20min) - CP W/KG -
5min - 410w
1min -
5sec - 1250w
1sec -
Gear - Powertap SL+
Info -

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Username - Calpol
Age - 44
Height - 6ft
Weight - 74KG
FTP (60min) - 243w FTP W/KG - 3.28
CP (20min) - 257w CP W/KG - 3.47
5min - 320ish
1min -
5sec -
1sec -
Gear - Cycleops Fluid 2 via Trainer Road.
Info -

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Username - SoliD
Age - 30
Height - 5ft 9in
Weight - 67.5KG
FTP (60min) - 257w FTP W/KG - 3.80
CP (20min) - 268w CP W/KG - 3.97
5min - 298w
1min - 383w
5sec -
1sec -
Gear - Garmin Vector v2.
Info - 24 mile rolling TT (1:02:26) in not great condition https://www.strava.com/activities/880520102

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Username - SDK^
Age - 36
Height - 6ft 2in
Weight - 83KG
FTP (60min) - FTP W/KG -
CP (20min) - 303w CP W/KG - 3.65
5min -
1min -
5sec -
1sec -
Gear - Stages power meter.
Info - specific FTP test, 23 miles, 500ft climing.

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Username - Roady
Age - 37
Height - 5ft 7in
Weight - 76KG
FTP (60min) - FTP W/KG -
CP (20min) - 271w CP W/KG - 3.56
5min - 320w
1min - 500w
5sec - 840w
1sec -
Gear - Vortex Smart turbo trainer & Powertap C1 power meter. Wahoo ELEMNT.
Info - Zwift race data & hard club/group rides.

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Username - FrenchTart
Age - 33
Height - 6ft 1in
Weight - 80.6KG
FTP (60min) - 315w FTP W/KG - 3.90
CP (20min) - 333w CP W/KG - 4.09
5min - 377w
1min - 494w
5sec - 761w
1sec -
Gear - Kurt Kinetic Road Machine.
Info - All based on TR stats.

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Username - GSVBagpuss
Age - 33
Height - 5ft 8in
Weight - 73KG
FTP (60min) - FTP W/KG -
CP (20min) - 237w CP W/KG - 3.24
5min -
1min -
5sec -
1sec -
Gear -
Info - Turbo trainer session.

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Username - BennyC
Age - 26
Height - 5ft 10in
Weight - 81KG
FTP (60min) - FTP W/KG -
CP (20min) - 331w CP W/KG - 4.09
5min - 379w
1min - 560w
5sec - 825w
1sec -
Gear - Cycleops Mag + Garmin HRM & GSC10 + Trainer Road (Virtual Power)
Info - https://www.trainerroad.com/career/bennyc

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Username - touch
Age - 27
Height - 6ft
Weight - 80KG
FTP (60min) - 283w FTP W/KG - 3.53
CP (20min) - 298w CP W/KG - 3.72
5min - 337w
1min - 449w
5sec - 1293w
1sec - 1369w
Gear - Gamin Vector2
Info - Strava link: https://www.strava.com/activities/900411351

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Username - Shamrock
Age - 27
Height - 5ft 4.5in
Weight - 59KG
FTP (60min) - 214w FTP W/KG - 3.62
CP (20min) - 226w CP W/KG - 3.83
5min - 248w
1min - 330w
5sec - 778w
1sec -
Gear - Stages
Info - Taken from Richmond Park TT

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Username - DanF
Age - 38
Height - 6ft
Weight - 74KG
FTP (60min) - 238w FTP W/KG - 3.21
CP (20min) - 259w CP W/KG - 3.5
5min - 318w
1min - 399w
5sec - 825w
1sec - 877w
Gear - P2M with Garmin Edge 810
Info - From previous 6 weeks of training ride data

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Username - thepeteh
Age - 26
Height - 6ft
Weight - 76KG
FTP (60min) - 315w FTP W/KG - 4.14
CP (20min) - 345w CP W/KG - 4.53
5min -
1min -
5sec -
1sec -
Gear - Stages, & Powertap
Info - Train 4-7hrs cycling a week, with running and swimming extra.
Not done much in max powers shorter than 5min as it's never been part of my training. 1sec power today was 1300+ (in a 3000m altitude chamber!)
Do blood testing and max ramp test in a lab every 6 months to establish training zones.

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Username - One More Solo
Age - 27
Height - 5ft 11in
Weight - 68KG
FTP (60min) - 272w FTP W/KG - 4.01
CP (20min) - 309w CP W/KG - 4.54
5min - 341w
1min - 546w
5sec - 942w
1sec - 1271w
Gear - Power2Max and Garmin 800
Info - FTP taken from a local 25. CP20 based on a climb in Mallorca.

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Username - dodg3rman
Age - 47
Height - 6ft 2in
Weight - 83KG
FTP (60min) - FTP W/KG -
CP (20min) - 264w CP W/KG - 3.18
5min - 345w
1min - 484w
5sec - 961w
1sec - 1194w
Gear - Wahoo Kickr
Info - CP taken from Zwift 20min test

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[xdcx]

Sounds good. I'll re-weigh myself soon (and do a fresh FTP test - my current one is from Sep/Oct last year).

Let's hope nobody gets precious about FTP figures

Stats are serious business!
Oh, even if you don't have your figures yet, if people just do a post saying they want included I can start populating the list above at least with usernames etc and then just fill in your stats when you post them. So feel free to post your interest and I'll get a wee head start

 

[xdcx]

A 20min test is a lot more accesible on a regular basis to the vast majority of people than a 60. Strava and such recommend a 20min as it's a hard effort in itself but most should be able to find a suitable location and suitable timescales to factor it into their training, so that's why I stuck with it for the thread although if you have done them over 60mins then even better, just say so on your post

 

[xdcx]

Will have to see if I can dig up my results from an FTP done last September on a Watt Bike.

If I remember correctly it was something like 242W for 20min at 60kg giving 4.03W/kg

Hard to say for certain if I'm weaker or stronger now without doing another test but I certainly feel weaker!

Be good to see yours as I am a kilo lighter and 250w over 20mins so very similar. What height are you? Guessing you are pretty handy on the climbs!

 

[xdcx]

I installed GoldenCheetah at 18:00.... 22:35, 60mins past my bed time and I am still sitting her fiddling about with it. Goodbye life.

Anyone else endlessly tinkering with this software?

 

[xdcx]

Roady - I have added you on the main post now. I just put your age as 34, weight as 85KG as those were true for your test. So it will be a wee smile on your face when you do another and can get it updated with lower weight and higher power


Thomas - I am now a converted full time user of GC. It is awesome. I took the time to do a lot of reading on Coggan Acute/Chronic fatigure calculations and the TSB is now my new friend! Mine was at -78 last week, which convinced me, yeah, I do need a little rest and recovery time. So I would recommend GC to anyone, it's a learning curve, but if you are into your stats and training you will grow to love it.


Everyone else - The Coggan power categorisation chart we are using and as linked above, I noticed I and all of us have been basing our category off the 60min FTP reading, that chart is based on 20min FT so I have updated all of our W/KG to 20mins and categories based on that to make it a bit easier and make a bit more sense. Actual FTP for in the thread will still be based off of 60mins (measured or estimated form 20min test) but the W/KG and Coggan category are based off the 20min readings

So you'll see on the main stats list, a wee upgrade for you all in terms of W/KG and category

 

[xdcx]

I have updated them all I believe? What one's have I missed? Everyone who has given a 20min and a weight should be done on the list, let me know if I missed anyone on it and I will slap myself and update! haha.

The Coggan categorisation chart we are using is based on 5s,1min,5min,20min(FT) - So just done it this way to tie in with that really. I would prefer a chart with the 60min FTP categorisations but all the Coggan one's I see from a quick look are the same as the one I link in the first post. Happy to change all this how people see best by the way, I just thought this way tied in and made more sense with the chart but I am happy when everyone else is

 

[xdcx]

Ah, I'm more than happy to use a figure that puts me higher up the chart, don't get me wrong I just always assumed it was FTP.

I'll double-check the stats above now. I thought I saw some that were inconsistent but now you've mentioned it I'm guessing it's just that they didn't provide their 20 minute power.

My OCD is awful. Don't do this to me man!

 

[xdcx]

I'm considering pulling the trigger on a Stages that's on sale for under £500. Does anyone have experience with one?

SDK has one. Hopefully he can give you some handy advice Is it on eBay you see the meter for <£500? If so, I spied them also and was ready to pull the trigger but then a friend of mine happened to be selling a set of Garmin Vector for a superb price so couldn't say no. Otherwise I would have went Ultegra crank with the stages on eBay.

 

[xdcx]

Evans Cycles actually. They are doing the SRAM Rival GXP version for £480. I'm fairly sure my TT bike has a GXP BB!

That's a good price! Someone might have a 10% for Evans on here you can have if they don't need it which will bring it down ever more. Stages are very popular, lots of people use them. Do some Googling and hope SDK can give you some info to help make up your mind

 

[xdcx]

Ok so my Stages is fitted, calibrated and working as far as I can tell.

Having tried it out on today's commute (not the best place I know) I feel like I need advice on how to train effectively with power! What garmin power fields do you prefer to display? Say I have an FTP of X watts, am I supposed to just try and keep it around X regardless of wind and gradient?

Today, in heavy London traffic, it just jumped around and didn't seem to correlate at all with what my legs were doing. Compared to cadence it seems really hard to keep it consistent! I was looking at 3s average.

Cheers!

Ahh, glad you got it man.

Honestly the best thing to do is use it on your rides for a while and consistently upload your data to strava as normal. Just use it and ride as you did and gather some data before worrying about training with power. Until you do this and have a good basis of your zones and getting used to reading as you ride, it won't be beneficial.

The 3s average is the display you want to use. That is what I use. On my main screen I have power 3s, cadence, HR, distance covered.

I have an FTP specific profile also, on that screen I have power 3s, cadence, HR, Lap avg power and a normal lap timer. I use this for FTP tests and interval sessions.

Once you get used to riding with power, and you have your power zones sorted on Strava (or get Golden Cheetah I recommend) you will soon make more sense of it all in your head and you will be able to correlate that to performance wise on the bike. The random watt figure jumping up and down like a yo-yo you see now is very very common when people start using power, don't worry about it.

Once you establish all this, you will be able to do for example, say 250w for 5mins, then 3mins at 300w etc. You will get to the point where your body and brain knows what those effort levels feel like to you, but not until you have all the initial data in place and get used to using it.

Sorry for the essay, hope it helps and feel free to ask away. Exactly why I created this thread

 

[xdcx]

It really does take time. I've been cycling 5/6 times a week with power for a month now and only now just starting to get used to it and making the most of it. Example being on Wednesday night I done a session consisting of efforts of 5min/4min/3min/2min/1min with the 5min being at 260w avg aim wise which is 10w over FTP (I think my FTP is higher now though actually).

I had a very consistent and bang on session, didn't stare at the watts the entire time, just a quick glance now and again which made me happy as it shows my brain has established what perceived effort relates to what power output I am pushing.

Inclines, declines, gusts of wind... they are all going to make even your 3s average jump around, of course it is going to move around like that but you do get a lot better at reading this and reading the cosistent power reading rather than the spikes you see. It's just a lot of practice, learning and getting your head into that way of thinking. I struggled to begin with but could not go back now, it all just makes a lot more sense and is a great way of training when you get it all planted in your head

 

[xdcx]

Thing is, Stages is taking a massive plunge in price as will others with the likes of these showing their faces and power training becoming a lot more affordable than the ridiculous money it has cost in the past:

http://4iiii.com/product/precision/
http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2015/01/update-4iiii-precision.html

 

[xdcx]

Golden Cheetah Guides!


GC is available here - http://www.goldencheetah.org/#section-download
Understanding ATL, CTL, TSB & TSS here - http://home.trainingpeaks.com/blog/article/what-is-the-performance-management-chart


#1 - Performance Management Chart (PMC)

Here is a little guide/tutorial for putting together a simple and informative Coggan based PMC chart in Golden Cheetah (GC). For this chart, you can make use of and edit the PMC chart which comes pre-loaded as a chart when you install GC, it is located on the "Trends" tab. Otherwise, go ahead and click the icon to the top right whilst on the "Trends" tab and "Add Chart". Select "Metric Trends" from the dropdown -

The screenshot above shows the preset you want to select on the preset tab. When you select Coggan PMC, ensure you click "apply" also for it to load the preset. Once it has applied, you can move on to using the "Basic" and "Curves" tabs. Below is screenshots of my settings which I think gives a nice presentable and readable layout for your PMC -

"Basic" tab:
Using "Current Selection" for your date range is ideal rather than limiting it. It lets you use the date ranges on the left hand pane of GC, meaning your chart is a lot more versatile and not limited to a specific date range.

Spoiler

"Curves" tab, shows the curve types I have and edited:

Spoiler

ATL curve settings:

Spoiler

CTL curve settings:

Spoiler

TSB curve settings:

Spoiler

Rides curve settings, this adds a handy line up from the date legend on the bottom of the graph to show whether you trained on that day so you can see where you had a rest day off the bike etc:

Spoiler

^^Clicking on the star icon on top of the "ride" line as per above will open you a window showing the main stats from that ride also, pretty neat!




This is a main view of the PMC with the current selection criteria being "This Month". Helpful to show your current readings and projected readings for the month ongoing:

Spoiler

This is a main view of the PMC with the current selection criteria being "Last 21 Days". Does not show projected readings for factoring rest/tapering but shows very well your training stress and form over previous 21 days which I feel is a pretty minimal baseline for planning, 1 or 2 weeks is too short a basis really for long term planning:

Spoiler

 

[xdcx]

First "proper" ride .....

Nice ride man, well done. Good average speed and avg cadence! I can't see your power curve, I can send you a follow request if you want? That way I could see it.

Weighted avg power is your average from the meter across the ride calculated against the weight of you (and I am not sure, but also bike) by Strava. So ensure your athlete and bike weights in Strava are spot on for this to be as close to accurate as possible. Your weighted avg over 80km is not going to be as high as your FTP, remember your FTP is for 60mins (as you know, usually it's upward estimated from a 20min test!) so you are not going to output your FTP for 2hours+ on a ride like that. If you were to all out attempt a 60min TT in spot on weather conditions you would then want your avg power to be right around your 60min FTP but for that ride you done today, that is very good.

Don't let it affect you negatively, as you say, taper and race day boost make a heck of a difference! I'd say that ride today is a very good positive basis for you to go into your race next week

 

[xdcx]

Thanks for your assessment.

So based on that 207W, do you think for the 56 miler I should be looking at maintaining around that wattage rather than my FTP?

Please do send a request on Strava, although I'm not a premium member so might not have a power curve anyway?

Requested you

OK, it's tough to answer because it's very person specific. I can only really base it on my own stats which lucky for you we are very closely matched weight/FTP wise. But things like individual strengths and weakness play their role, like if you are a great TT'er and I am great on hills or vice versa. But either way, you simply will not be able to sustain your FTP for 56 miles/2+ hours. My drop off from a 256w FTP for 20mins is 207w for the 2 hours. Estimated by Strava that is. The problem you have is only a week untiil your race so not enough time to gather and populate all this data for yourself via a few weeks training and an FTP test.

I would recommend getting Golden Cheetah and even getting todays ride and a few through the week, it will calculate you a power zone chart which can only help. But we can base very very roughly baseline effort for your race on my stats and your ride today, only you know how you felt on that ride today but you should be certainly aiming avg 205-215w sustained over the race from what we have in front of us.

For Golden Cheetah, you'll see my first guide above, I kind of jumped in a bit too far, I plan on doing guides from the ground up for GC, so will go over setting up athlete profile and configuring basics and first usage info which I think might help some people get to grips with it a bit better as it's quite steep learning curve and daunting to begin with.

Sorry I always end up writing essays.

 

[xdcx]

Added you to the list Benny

Golden Cheetah is telling me amazing things based on past 4 weeks of training, but I am not posting figures until I do an FTP test. If it's anywhere near correct and estimating properly, I will be gobsmacked.

 

[xdcx]

One hour (almost 59:18) effort from Sunday 248W, and then last night max 20 min power of 274W on a 10 mile TT, weight down to 68.1 KG so 3.64W/KG for 60 minutes or 4.02 for 20 minutes.

Can't actually remember how you were working everything out xdcx!

I'll update your stats on the first page man. Very well done, congrats
W/KG on the stats list for everyone is based off their 20min FTP so your W/KG on the list will be shown as 4.02 as the Coggan category listing we use determines your category based on 20min FT

 

[xdcx]

Update for me also.
Wednesday night I done a 50 miler including a tempo effort over a cat3 climb, I didn't go all out and so was surprised after the ride to see a new 20min AVG power of 262w, up from my actual FTP test where I averaged 250w. So that was welcomed. I also 2nd overall the climb on Strava, fed up of 2nd places

So new 20min CP is 262w and 60min FTP is 218w. That's 4.36 for the 20min categorised as mid cat2 on the Coggan chart. Can't help but think that all reads way too high for my actual ability to be honest and based on training the past 2 weeks and my GC estimations my actual 20min CP is going to be a good bit higher than 262w, plan to test this in the coming week and not saying what I think my CP will be in anticipation of disappointment and embrassment haha.