bruce

File Transfer Protocol (sorry, was a technical person in my previous life!) No, it stands for "Functional Threshold Power" or "Threshold Power" and corresponds to your power at Lactate Threshold. see http://www.cyclingpeakssoftware.com/power411/ for all the info.

w/kg is a more important performance predictor than pure watts, as it levels the playing field - in any discipline. Not sure why you say only 10% improvement of ftp is possible, my ftp has certainly improved more than 10%. Basically your ftp is governed by your lactate threshold. Your potential power at lactate threshold is limited by your VO2Max. So, you potential for improvement is be governed by how close your lactate threshold is to your VO2Max. BUT, you are also able to improve your efficiency, i.e. more of the energy you burn ends up propelling the bike forward, and these improvements can continue for a long time.

The guy on the scooter?

Swiss, as Michelle says, record at the highest resolution you can i.e. 1 sec. There is a smoothing capability in WKO+ when you view the graph - you can smooth it to any amount you want to take away the sharp peaks and troughs.

You can get really good quality workouts indoors, and work at raising your FTP.

Can do the same on the indoor, but take into account that most people don't produce the same power indoors as they do outdoors, so this would essentially be your indoor FTP.

Yup, TS is right - extract data from WKO+ by creating a chart with all the data you are interested in, then "copy raw" and paste into excel.

Hey Swiss, There are a number of ways to establish your FTP. Initially though I would recommend doing a 20min TT on the road as follows: 10min warmup - endurance pace 5min hard effort - 85% - 90% max HR if this is your first time 10min endurance pace 20min TT - @ Lactate Threshold HR if this is your first time. Do not start too hard, all out effort in the last 5 minutes. Then, your FTP would be calculated as 95% of your average power in the 20min TT.

You can only do this with the MMP curve in the Athlete Home Page. Create an MMP curve, customise it, and specify the two dates you want. bruce2008-01-17 09:42:28

No, ride at the cadence that feels the most comfortable. Your body knows how to select the optimal cadence based on the muscle fibre composition of your legs. Strength is not the issue in cycling, power is. Power = force (strength) x speed (cadence). The force you apply to pedals when riding a bike is probably less than 20% of your single repitition maximum force you can produce. As has been said 300w is 300w on the bike - on a heavier bike, 300w is just a bit slower. When you get to race day, your physical preparation is complete (or as good as it is going to get). Mental preparation is more important on race day. I know I love getting on my race bike - light wheels etc. It just feels fast, which makes you feel fast, and puts you mentally in the right place.

Training on the heavier bike will save wear & tear on the light bike. Training wise it won't make a difference if you use power as your measure of intensity. Mentally, I think it makes a big difference on race day when you get on a bike that feels light and quick. Come race day, the only thing that is going to make a difference to your performance is your mental state. Anything you do that improves your mental state, and get's you into the "racing" mode is going to help your performance.

I just experienced the same problem as Jason - some 10min added into my file from my ride today. Dr Watt, wot's goin' on!! Will send you the file.

Geez, she also cleans your bike! I'm impressed!!

I think I understand what you are seeing, I was just wanting to know if you downloaded rides this weekend using both WKO (Cyclingpeaks) and PowerAgent, and you were seeing the same thing in both sets of data? If you are, it is clearly a CPU problem. I have a spare that you can use to check the problem.

Jason, Did the drops appear in the data downloaded by WKO and PowerAgent? I have some spare CPU's here in Joburg, you are welcome to try one out to see if it is in fact a CPU problem.

Here is a graphical representation of the physiological adaptions that occur at the various power levels (Stern Power Levels and Coggan Power Levels) http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd226/ASimmons/TrainingZonesComparison-2.jpgbruce2008-01-08 23:40:03

Edman you'd have to have custom made cranks - I know someone that has bought from Zinn. The correct length for me is around 190mm, so I use 180mm Dura Ace.

The limit is there to try to protect the juniors. But if you think about it, low cadence/high torque situations that can apparently damage knees occur during climbing, not on the flats or downhills, so there is nothing stopping a junior rider from pushing too big a gear on the climbs. As the articles point out - gears are just linkages, they don't add anything to the overall production of power, so restricting gear ratios doesn't level the playing field, it provides an advantage to riders that have a greater percentage of Type I muscle fibres.

Was out at the Cradle - doing my Tuesday morning TT Will go Loooong tomorrow.

Whatever gave you that idea??

Edman as you say, longer cranks should not make a difference to your overall power, the reduction in force that must be applied is balanced by the increase in tangential speed because the longer crank has to travel a greater distance in one revolution. Biomechanically though, a longer crank will suit riders with longer legs, and hence longer leg muscles. A muscle has a range of contraction, so riding with short cranks and long leg muscles means that your leg muscles are not operating in their full range of contraction. See http://www.zinncycles.com/cranks.aspx for the generally accepted metirc for calculating optimal crank length.

http://www.slowtwitch.com/Training/Intro_to_Power_151.html

eavesdrop!!! .. fascinating conversations behind the closed doors of Google! As long as you weren't peaking through the keyhole