Power/Weight Thread

[merlin]

Strava says my fitness is 41 and my fatigue 55 as of today, sooooo I'm doing nothing till weekend now, need a rest, might do an FTP test weekend to see how things are going.

If I was to guess I'd say my FTP will be unchanged at circa 230W, 235W at a push.

Ultimately though my aim isn't my FTP, all I'm looking to achieve this year is to sort out my weak spots - which are a) climbing (for my power and weight I should be climbing faster) b) 30 to 90 second power (useful for tracking racing where 99% of the time it's down to a bunch sprint on the last lap or last but one lap).

I have absolutely FA sprint in me beyond around 25 to 30 seconds, that needs to change.

Ok so still a little fatigued but managed 232w ftp today. 3.46 w/kilo.

I now have a mini-goal to try to touch 3.5w/kilo by June/July, but really the core focus hasn't changed - my climbing needs to be better, and my sustained sprinting is utter dog ***t, needs sorting out.

 

[dod]

Thought I'd join in. done very little this last 18 months or so but personal life is now back on track and planning a lot more activity this year. Dropped 5kG since January, planing to drop another 5 and got a proper gym routine sorted out again.

*Username - dod
Age - 55
*Height - 5'10"
*Weight - 80KG
*FTP (60min) - 195
CP (20min) - 208
5min - 243
1min - 326
5sec - 888
1sec - 930
Gear - elite direto.
Info - all figures taken from strava

 

[Thomas. PLease.]

Time to update, hopefully more to come this year. New 20min and 1 min pb.

Username - Thomas. PLease.
Age - 30
Height - 5ft 10in
Weight - 84KG
FTP (60min) - 351w FTP W/KG - 4.17
CP (20min) - 370w CP W/KG - 4.40
5min - 450w
1min - 742w
5sec - 1372w
1sec - 1421w
Gear - Power2Max with Garmin Edge 810.
Info - FTP info all taken from race or TT data.

Few updated numbers, hopefully more to come for 20min and 5min numbers this year, and as always more weight to lose.
Username - Thomas. PLease.
Age - 31
Height - 5ft 10in
Weight - 84KG
FTP (60min) - 363w FTP W/KG - 4.32
CP (20min) - 380w CP W/KG - 4.52
5min - 456w (more to be had here given I did 458w for 6mins)
1min - 742w
5sec - 1378w
1sec - 1471w
Gear - Power2Max with Garmin Edge 810.
Info - FTP info all taken from race or TT data.

 

[GSVBagpuss]

Another 4DP test after about 12 weeks of training, one 490 mile 4 day epic and then about 6 weeks of just riding

Username -GSVBagpuss
Age - 36
*Height - 5ft 8in
*Weight - 72.5kg (-2kg)
W/KG - 3.21 (+0.3ish)
Coggan Rating -
*FTP (60min) - 233w (+10)
CP (20min) - 233w (+10)
5min - 280w (+11) (297w on the road)
1min - 398w (469w best)
5sec - 705w (950 ish best)

Some time since an update and been training again properly for 3-4 months. Only tested the long efforts

Username -GSVBagpuss
Age - 37 (+1)
*Height - 171cm
*Weight - 70.5kg (-2kg again)
W/KG - 3.52 (+0.3 again)
Coggan Rating -
*FTP (60min) - 235w (+2)
CP (20min) - 247w (+14)

60 minute power is a genuine 60 minute effort. The 247w for 20 mins was average heart rate of 165 so I think I can hit 250+ if I focus on just that. Also think 300w for 5 mins should be possible if I give it a proper go

 

[xdcx]

CP20 last night = 342w @ 60KG.
That's the same power I nearly died doing in October to come 8th in the Scottish hill climb. Except the HC was only for 13 mins and was a lovely hill, not on a turbo in me garage.
Previous best CP20 on a trainer was 321w. Found 20w down the back of the couch somewhere but I actually went a gear harder and emptied myself the last 2 minutes rather than hanging on.... so reckon 345w is there

 

[One More Solo]

Those are awesome numbers. Kudos.

 

[SoliD]

Update on mine following last weekends TT, will update the 60 minutes approx after sundays TT

Username - SoliD
Age - 3034
Height - 5ft 9in
Weight - 67.5KG 68KG
FTP (60min) - 257W 278W FTP W/KG - 3.80 4.09
CP (20min) - 268w 294W CP W/KG - 3.97 4.23
5min - 298w 343W
1min - 383w453W
5sec - 887W
1sec -
Gear - Garmin Vector v2/Rotor InPower
Info - Combo of CX Race and 10 Mile TT.

 

[JEZ 8553]

BC CAT 2 RR for few years now, predominantly in Eastern Region (avoided gaining higher CAT as then stuck doing only NAT B's so lots of driving to circuits). Don't do TT's (time constrained with just 1 discipline having a family/life outside racing etc).

Username - JEZ 8553 (Jez_PKS in games)
Age - 42
Height - 5ft 9in
Weight -71 kg
FTP (60min) - 334 FTP W/KG - 4.7
CP (20min) - 350 CP W/KG - 4.95
5min - 413
1min - 645
5sec - 1323
1sec - 1450
Gear - Quarq Elsa x 2, Quarq Red, Quarq D-Zero.
Info - Road Racing, Road Circuits.

Most of the above numbers are taken from either races or when doing rides with Friends. Don't really do all out efforts to exhaustion as most solo training requires repeatable intervals so peak numbers not so important...just how often you can do them.

 

[Jonny ///M]

Good numbers mate.

Very true on the last part too, following what my mate does for his coach at least.

 

[JEZ 8553]

Cheers. Power numbers creeping up over the years but not sure how much further i can go. The constant training and then battling finding the time to recover really creates a wedge in spending quality family time and just time enjoying not being at work. Its like an Arms race in the amateur scene, 350 + FTP's are common place in many riders now 2nd cat and above, many 1st and Elite riders have WT pro rider numbers its getting obscene !! I struggle to compete against 20 year old's who can spend 2 months off season in Calpe and are able to spend post race sleeping on the couch looked after by mum...as opposed to me having to cut the grass and go out for park walks with my 5 and 1 year old. The constant feeling of fatigue really starts becoming a wear, especially when results aren't showing for the hard work, you spend so much time worrying about how you are performing that everything else becomes secondary...its almost like an addiction !!

Sometimes I really just want to let it all go, clear my race calender and just enjoy the bike...but then i realise i wont be able to ride with my mates (its inevitable that friends become the people you spend most of your off time with...training partners) and its hard to accept the hard work to get to the current level of fitness will be lost...without doing the harder work to get it back again.

Warning to all...don't chase numbers, chase enjoyment

 

[xdcx]

Cheers. Power numbers creeping up over the years but not sure how much further i can go. The constant training and then battling finding the time to recover really creates a wedge in spending quality family time and just time enjoying not being at work. Its like an Arms race in the amateur scene, 350 + FTP's are common place in many riders now 2nd cat and above, many 1st and Elite riders have WT pro rider numbers its getting obscene !! I struggle to compete against 20 year old's who can spend 2 months off season in Calpe and are able to spend post race sleeping on the couch looked after by mum...as opposed to me having to cut the grass and go out for park walks with my 5 and 1 year old. The constant feeling of fatigue really starts becoming a wear, especially when results aren't showing for the hard work, you spend so much time worrying about how you are performing that everything else becomes secondary...its almost like an addiction !!

Sometimes I really just want to let it all go, clear my race calender and just enjoy the bike...but then i realise i wont be able to ride with my mates (its inevitable that friends become the people you spend most of your off time with...training partners) and its hard to accept the hard work to get to the current level of fitness will be lost...without doing the harder work to get it back again.

Warning to all...don't chase numbers, chase enjoyment

Top quality post. Hits home with me in so many ways.
Glad to have you in the forum Jez, keep visiting

 

[JEZ 8553]

Top quality post. Hits home with me in so many ways.
Glad to have you in the forum Jez, keep visiting

Thanks. Hope I haven't come across as too negative for anyone thinking of getting into the racing scene. I really love competing and the feeling you get when winning that race or being at the sharp end of a race with Elite riders and even Pro's really makes it all come together and worth it....i just wish it was as easy as switching on my PC and getting good by just playing and having fun

 

[merlin]

Post strikes a chord with me. I'm only 3.5w/kilo, age 47, track race a bit so I tend to be able to hold my own to a sort of "ok-ish" degree, so I should be happy really, but, that "I'm now happy with where I am" moment never seems to come. The goalposts keep moving. Yup, that post is spot on with this lowly 3.5 w/kilo amateur, I've slotted into the number obsession game, I'm hooked on watching the weather, constantly trying to sneak a bit of Zwift in, even when I'm clearly fatigued to hell.

But you can't jump off, you can't just give that fitness away.

We're locked in, there's no escape!

 

[Shadowness]

Two reasons I have never been interested in road racing......

1) Many of them sound like utter crash fests. No thanks.
2) I bet most of the time, the 'best' rider doesn't win.

On point 2.....it's all about being in the right place at the right time. Like some of the 'heroes' on our club rides, you can sit on a group and do bugger all for the ride and win the sprints at the end. Woop de doo!

I'm probably over dramatising but I think there's some validity to what I say. That's the main reason I got into triathlons. There's no hiding at all. It's all you.

 

[Jonny ///M]

All these posts make sense.

Tonight was a good example for me. I had my HR monitor on but didn't look at it, just went on feel.

Good numbers at the bundy and a hard start as usual. I got to a part 15 minutes in were I like a wee dig and I see 3 guys up the road. Greig Brown(2nd cat), dougie Watson(19m 10 TTs) and an ex Scottish RR champion. I jumped across and got right onto 3rd wheel and had to endure a good few miles of hell until they two settled down and we could all take a spell.

By the climb I reckon we had a 30s gap on the bunch.

Once it all came back together, after chasing the folk who took the shortcut they start attacking as they are fresher.

I chased one guy then attacked him straight off then chased about 4 attacks and did a few myself to find my quads like stone come the sprint

 

[SoliD]

Two reasons I have never been interested in road racing......

1) Many of them sound like utter crash fests. No thanks.
2) I bet most of the time, the 'best' rider doesn't win.

On point 2.....it's all about being in the right place at the right time. Like some of the 'heroes' on our club rides, you can sit on a group and do bugger all for the ride and win the sprints at the end. Woop de doo!

I'm probably over dramatising but I think there's some validity to what I say. That's the main reason I got into triathlons. There's no hiding at all. It's all you.

What do you class the best rider? The most intelligent or the strongest or the best bike handler....Reality is the best rider is a combination of multiple factors and once you get up a category or two then the best will generally win, and then if there is a crash, it is the best positioned, but like anything elements of luck come into it. Unless you ride pursuit on track you'll never have that luck factor taken out of it.

PS win the sprints at the end lollll, its a club run.

 

[Shadowness]

I guess I meant luck is too big a factor for me, probably not being the 'best'. Poor phrasing on my part.

 

[JEZ 8553]

Two reasons I have never been interested in road racing......

1) Many of them sound like utter crash fests. No thanks.
2) I bet most of the time, the 'best' rider doesn't win.

On point 2.....it's all about being in the right place at the right time. Like some of the 'heroes' on our club rides, you can sit on a group and do bugger all for the ride and win the sprints at the end. Woop de doo!

I'm probably over dramatising but I think there's some validity to what I say. That's the main reason I got into triathlons. There's no hiding at all. It's all you.

A lot of the lower cat races are crash fests, especially on bike circuits. Road races tend to be different and its rare to see crashes in Regional A and especially Nat B's where the races are fast and strung out a lot of the time making it safer. In my experience its only the lower 3/4 cat races that tend to result in big bunch finishes. Reg A's and especially Nat B's are won 9/10 times by breaks or solo riders (from a break) and that's in the Eastern region where courses are rolling at best with a 3 min climb (at race pace) longest at best (though you do it 8-12 times). Avoidance of crashes can also be minimised by being near the front for technical sections that can cause snagging in the bunch and keeping far right going through feed zones if not taking a bottle (last weeks Eastern Reg Champs only crash was in the feed zone caused by a rogue bottle) and sprinting for a top 10 not 25th place in bunch finishes.

In terms of the 'best' rider this will usually be determined by sheer strength and astuteness with a solo win or following enough attacks to be in the winning move and beating the rest of the break while still working to keep it away. Sheer luck may mean you follow the correct wheel when the winning move goes but a lot of the time this is determined by who has the legs to go with it as these moves normally happen at key points in the race where only a few are strong enough to make the move and the bunch sits up and lets it go (from sheer need to recover). Tactical prowess also helps by knowing when to invest your efforts and not flog yourself wasting energy trying to get away at the wrong time or follow bad wheels. All in all there's far more to winning road races than big FTP's, even in sprints positioning isn't about just manoeuvring or luck, you need to be fighting at the front, following attacks from within the last few km's from those wanting to avoid a bunch gallop and STILL having the legs to do a big sprint kick at the end all without getting swamped and dumped to mid pack.

 

[Thomas. PLease.]

Cheers. Power numbers creeping up over the years but not sure how much further i can go. The constant training and then battling finding the time to recover really creates a wedge in spending quality family time and just time enjoying not being at work. Its like an Arms race in the amateur scene, 350 + FTP's are common place in many riders now 2nd cat and above, many 1st and Elite riders have WT pro rider numbers its getting obscene !! I struggle to compete against 20 year old's who can spend 2 months off season in Calpe and are able to spend post race sleeping on the couch looked after by mum...as opposed to me having to cut the grass and go out for park walks with my 5 and 1 year old. The constant feeling of fatigue really starts becoming a wear, especially when results aren't showing for the hard work, you spend so much time worrying about how you are performing that everything else becomes secondary...its almost like an addiction !!

Sometimes I really just want to let it all go, clear my race calender and just enjoy the bike...but then i realise i wont be able to ride with my mates (its inevitable that friends become the people you spend most of your off time with...training partners) and its hard to accept the hard work to get to the current level of fitness will be lost...without doing the harder work to get it back again.

Warning to all...don't chase numbers, chase enjoyment

I feel you on this. I've been a 2nd cat for 4 years now I think. I do love road racing, but its starting to wear thin. The seemingly endless training, to often just make up the numbers can be quite hard to swallow. I'm lucky enough to not have a family yet, just a very understanding fiance, but I can't see me maintaining this level for too many more years, before the fun disappears and it just becomes too much of a drain.

 

[xdcx]

A lot of the lower cat races are crash fests, especially on bike circuits. Road races tend to be different and its rare to see crashes in Regional A and especially Nat B's where the races are fast and strung out a lot of the time making it safer. In my experience its only the lower 3/4 cat races that tend to result in big bunch finishes. Reg A's and especially Nat B's are won 9/10 times by breaks or solo riders (from a break) and that's in the Eastern region where courses are rolling at best with a 3 min climb (at race pace) longest at best (though you do it 8-12 times). Avoidance of crashes can also be minimised by being near the front for technical sections that can cause snagging in the bunch and keeping far right going through feed zones if not taking a bottle (last weeks Eastern Reg Champs only crash was in the feed zone caused by a rogue bottle) and sprinting for a top 10 not 25th place in bunch finishes.

In terms of the 'best' rider this will usually be determined by sheer strength and astuteness with a solo win or following enough attacks to be in the winning move and beating the rest of the break while still working to keep it away. Sheer luck may mean you follow the correct wheel when the winning move goes but a lot of the time this is determined by who has the legs to go with it as these moves normally happen at key points in the race where only a few are strong enough to make the move and the bunch sits up and lets it go (from sheer need to recover). Tactical prowess also helps by knowing when to invest your efforts and not flog yourself wasting energy trying to get away at the wrong time or follow bad wheels. All in all there's far more to winning road races than big FTP's, even in sprints positioning isn't about just manoeuvring or luck, you need to be fighting at the front, following attacks from within the last few km's from those wanting to avoid a bunch gallop and STILL having the legs to do a big sprint kick at the end all without getting swamped and dumped to mid pack.

I think it differs across the country to be honest. 3/4's up here aren't crash fest but they are sketch fests.... riders doing mental stuff and totally ignoring basic rules is common place along side the brake jabbing and endless twitchyness of the bunch from it all. I hate it. Your part about 3/4 being majority bunch finish is nowhere near accurate for up here either. I can barely tell you a race of recent years that has been a complete bunch. Always 2-8 guys up road with massive gap as everyone else has seen too much TdF on the telly and think s they are riding like WT teams and can't possible do anything other than soft pedal as random lad A in the same jersey managed to get up the road. The races end up being insanely negative due to this from the breaks forming early.

Anything I have ever done where it is E1234 has been head a shoulders better to ride. Even though standard is insanely higher I go better and result better because it's smooth and not sketchy despite more speed and being harder in every way physically.
All that being said, going back to your points in earlier post. The standards in the UK even at 3 and 4 is mental when you think about it. Dudes are strong right he way through. In the past 3 years even it is really noticeable in general terms. Boggo races full of 4's are averaging 40kmh these days....

I think the easiest way to determine it is that the BEST rider on the day literally is the guy that wins. You can't say the best rider didn't win because if he was the best then he would have won! Weather, course profile, length, fatigue level could swing who happens to be the best rider in every case themselves. So when you combine all of these things then the best rider can only be the guy that wins it on that very day. The guy that is stronger in all of his training for 3 months before the race than the guy that wins is NOT the better rider..... if he was, he would have won.