Power Meter Project with 5 riders testing wattage based training program
Image by Unplug. Dave Simonson had finished three ironman competitions before he entered the power meter project in 2007, so I knew he was a very experienced athlete. However, if you don’t know about training, it is doubtful that you can finish three ironman competitions. Dave entered the project because he recently had purchased a […]
Ironman Increased Threshold Power with 62 Watts in 12 weeks Read More »
Back in January 2007 I did a Power Meter Project to find out how people I didn´t know personally responded to some of my training theories. They performed a 12 week training program with power profile tests in week 1, 6 and 12. The results were really impressive with progress in all major physiological parameters.
Now I’m looking for riders who want to be a part of my project:
Requirements:
Ӣ Age: 18 years or older
Ӣ Own a power meter (SRM, PowerTap, Ergomo or Polar CS600)
Ӣ Training amount: 10-14hrs per week.
Ӣ Follow the training plan strictly
What do you get?
You get a free 31 days training program that will increase your threshold power. There will be self performed physical tests on day 1 and 31. Training amount will be 10 to 14hrs per week. The training program will be personalized to your current physical fitness based on self performed tests.
If you are interested in being a part of this project, please leave a comment on this post. I will contact you via email with more info.
Last chance to participate is July 7th.
Increase your threshold power: Join Power Meter Project 2008! Read More »
The Power Meter Profile Project has been collecting power meter data from riders from all over the World for the last 3 months. 31st of July is the last chance to join this project and make the total data amount even better. Thus, if you haven’t submitted your power records yet, then it is about time to fill in the form on this site. If you know about PowerTap or SRM users who have performed these tests then please ask them to submit their data. The more data we get, the more power to this study.
Read more about the Power Meter Profile Project here.
I will publish the results and conclusion in August.
Last chance to participate in the Power Meter Profile Project is 31st of July Read More »
Gonzalo is one of the more experienced riders into power meter training as he has been training with power for the last three years (SRM, Ergomo and now PowerTap SL). What he was looking for was a training program that could motivate him for training to cycling races of 80-90km. Motivation is the cornerstone in many riders training program, because even the best program will end up as a failure if the rider is not motivated. I guess a part of the predicted progress can be explained by motivation. A motivated rider trains harder and obtains better results than a non-motivated rider. Thus, my challenge was to motivate Gonzalo and keep track of his performance during the 12 weeks.
Focus on Aerobic Power
I decided to focus on 5 and 20min maximum power in the first 6 weeks and then work harder with anaerobic power in the last 6 weeks. I prefer to build a great aerobic base instead of just working on the anaerobic stuff from the very beginning. The reason for this is that it takes longer to build an optimal aerobic engine than anaerobic endurance. It is quite fast to train anaerobic endurance to a relative high level compared to the time it takes to optimize maximum oxygen consumption. Well, but he asked for more anaerobic endurance and sprinting power? Yes, but in cycling races of 2 hours it is essential to have a high VO2 max and endurance. If he got that, he has a chance to get home with the peloton or even make a breakaway. But if he is limited in these two factors, VO2 max and endurance, he will be dropped before they get to the final sprint. Thus, the primary goals for the first period were improvements in 5 and 20min maximum power.
Intervals
Like all the other riders in this project Gonzalo had to struggle with intervals three times a week. In the first couple of week it was two days with intervals and on Sundays he participated in some duathlon events of 2hrs duration. The following weeks were with intervals on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
Gonzalo performed several intervals of 6min work / 4min active recovery with a workload around his 20min maximum power (Normally done three times on each interval day). There were also a couple of days 3x(3+3)min and 40/20sec intervals to maximize his VO2 max and add some fuel to his anaerobic enzymes.
Results
1min power increased dramatically making him a much stronger rider with more punch in his attacks. Combined with significant improvements in 5 and 20min maximum power, Gonzalo is now a lot more competitive in flat cycling races. I could wish that he was stronger in sprints, but the 1, 5 and 20min maximum power will result in more success for him in the races after all.
| Maximum Power Tests | 5sec | 1min | 5min | 20min | Body Weight |
| Week 1 (Watt) | 1105W | 557W | 357W | 321W | 73kg/160.9lbs |
| Week 1 (Watt/kg) | 15.1W/kg | 7.6W/kg | 4.9W/kg | 4.4W/kg | |
| Week 6 (Watt) | 1148W | 604W | 389W | 335W | 72.5kg |
| Week 6 (Watt/kg) | 15.8W/kg | 8.3W/kg | 5.4W/kg | 4.6W/kg | |
| Week 12 (Watt) | 1113W | 674W | 416W | 342W | 73kg |
| Week 12 (Watt/kg) | 15.2W/kg | 9.2W/kg | 5.7W/kg | 4.7W/kg |
VO2 Max Is Essential In Competitive Cycling Read More »
Yesterday I published and commented on the results from Dave Simonson. Today, I will talk about Marc Moeller who is a category 3 rider with an ambition of promoting to category 2 this season. That goal sounds quite fair if Marc’s training wasn’t limited to only 8 hours per week. Thus, Marc gave me a challenge when he entered the project, but also a great chance to test how much progress you can achieve with training program with limited time available.
Wattage controlled intervals
I chose to push Marc’s intervals to the maximum capable amount. He was supposed to do intervals three times a week, but these days were not only like regular interval days, they were really tough workouts that required a dedicated effort to succeed. These intervals were monitored on his PowerTap Pro. There was a risk that this program could be a failure if the total training load was too heavy.
The three interval days were one session with anaerobic intervals (6 bursts of 40 seconds at 600-650W, recovery 6minutes), one training day with VO2 max intervals (3 times 3minutes 400W, 3min recovery or a couple of sets of 6 bursts of 40/20seconds at 410+ W) and finally one day with threshold power intervals in the range of 3 to 15minutes, normally with a total time of 24-30minutes. Two times a week there were sprint sessions with short power sprints and regular sprints.
Have a look at the graphs and full results
How To Make It To The Podium With Less Training Read More »