Onboard power meter vs indoor power trainers

[arendoog]

...and Alban Lakata went for a more scientific approach...

Alban Lakata is still n laaitie that cannot be trusted .I would rather trust the old dog,s approach

[rouxtjie]

...and Alban Lakata went for a more scientific approach...

On the pros using power topic...anyone saw coolharvey's tweet of his garmin's screenshot on one of the days at the epic

 

360W avg for 5 hours 50 min....cheese and rice.

[JohanC]

On the pros using power topic...anyone saw coolharvey's tweet of his garmin's screenshot on one of the days at the epic

 

360W avg for 5 hours 50 min....cheese and rice.

 

That's just crazy!

[rouxtjie]

That's just crazy!

flippen stupid....just shows how talented the man is. Nice thing about power numbers are it shows just how good / kuk you actually are. No place to hide 

[BicyclePower]

flippen stupid....just shows how talented the man is. Nice thing about power numbers are it shows just how good / kuk you actually are. No place to hide 

i think that was NP and not ave power, either way is is very impressive and just makes us wonder what their FTP must be!! 

[rouxtjie]

i think that was NP and not ave power, either way is is very impressive and just makes us wonder what their FTP must be!! 

Yea, normalized, you right....but still, nearly moered off my chair

[carbon29er]

that is interesting and can only lead me to think you don't see any value in them because:

 

1.You are not motivated to do the hard yard(i mentioned earlier that its not like a new shiny set of aero wheels, its doenst make you instantly stronger/faster, but as with most things in life, hard work pays)

2.You don't understand the numbers or what the device is measuring or don't understand how to use it with a structured training program.

 

Neither of the two reasons are the device's fault...which one was missing for you?

 

PS I mentioned above that the characteristic you delving into cuts both ways...ie you couldn't make the power meter work for you thus it must be crap and that is the gospel you spread.

 

Definitely no 2, clueless. Don't understand the science behind the numbers at all. Just been using the power meter on my bike because it makes me feel good about myself. And sitting on the hamster wheel sweating like crazy with burning legs because, well, I don't really know the because.

 

So you believe in Joe Friel whereas I prefer the work done by Laursen in analysing the various protagonists and the holy grail they have found.

 

What Laursen found in analysing the various methods of training in a time limited environment was a programme designed to achieve a certain wattage was the most efficient.  In simple terms, the most efficient way for an amateur cyclist to improve is to overcome resistance based on peak power output in intervals.

 

A second characteristic of the human being is the desire to give up.  My assertion that you dismissed so condescendingly, by telling me to google Joe Friel to set myself free, was that a controlled, repeatable environment gives best results as we're less likely to give up on a trainer. Which is where the Froome Minaar comparison came from. I find it's hard to ride outdoors at an exact wattage without staring at a screen. How do you do it Rouxtjie?

 

In none of the reading I've ever done of Friel's work does he disagree with any of this.

[rouxtjie]

Definitely no 2, clueless. Don't understand the science behind the numbers at all. Just been using the power meter on my bike because it makes me feel good about myself. And sitting on the hamster wheel sweating like crazy with burning legs because, well, I don't really know the because.

 

So you believe in Joe Friel whereas I prefer the work done by Laursen in analysing the various protagonists and the holy grail they have found.

 

What Laursen found in analysing the various methods of training in a time limited environment was a programme designed to achieve a certain wattage was the most efficient.  In simple terms, the most efficient way for an amateur cyclist to improve is to overcome resistance based on peak power output in intervals.

 

A second characteristic of the human being is the desire to give up.  My assertion that you dismissed so condescendingly, by telling me to google Joe Friel to set myself free, was that a controlled, repeatable environment gives best results as we're less likely to give up on a trainer. Which is where the Froome Minaar comparison came from. I find it's hard to ride outdoors at an exact wattage without staring at a screen. How do you do it Rouxtjie?

 

In none of the reading I've ever done of Friel's work does he disagree with any of this.

Well now I am properly confused, see I read your posts as coming across quite condescending, "you don't have a powermeter / had a powermeter / raced and trained with power and its all a bunch of woohaa / trying to keep up with the jones's foefie" This includes scaly coaches, distributors and retailers all sitting on the power gravy train waiting for someone to show interest so they can make their quick buck because everyone who is using it is as stupid as a powerbalance bracelet owner. Yet you seem to buy into larsen and friel's writing....Am I wrong?

 

My comments were aimed at what it is and what it is not....Its not an instant gratification product like a new aero wheelset / carbon frame / groupo / bib. Its an enabler, and with the right person(motivated) and knowledge(coach or research) it will mean far more ito results(again, don't confuse this with podium placing) than those quick fix purchases I mentioned earlier. The catch, well you have to work you mielie off to get them. If i didn't work for you, sorry...but don't label people that use it and get results as idiots.

 

PS. I am not a friel disciple, but rather take things that work for me(I suggest him purely because he does a power 101 in his blogspot and make for good introductory reading), ito authors friel is amongst them but so is allen / coggen(they have a great book on training and racing with a powermeter, again google is your friend)

 

PSS

 

1.I don't own a powermeter on the bike I race with...I can't afford one

2.I don't have shares in bicyclepower / power device retailers / coaching centres

3.I am joe avg with limited time to train, a powermeter helped me make the most of that time.

[carbon29er]

Well now I am properly confused

 

It appears you are confused. And confusing me with someone else.

 

OP wanted advice on one or the other. I challenged the Namibian's statement that "Firstly, if you are serious about improving, then a power meter is certainly the way to go."

 

I merely pointed out that an IDT will do a better job as it's repeatable. My opinion, backed by scientific research. No slagging off of power meters.  Challenge statements from a position of knowledge, not opinion.

 

Yes, I commented about how we, as cyclists, waste our money on stuff. I've just bought a set of Zipp wheels with disc brakes. Will they get me up SuikerBossie quicker that Darren Lill? No, but I like them never-the-less. Do I prefer riding on them to looking at my power output? Absolutely.

 

Remember the Greg LeMond saying: "It never get easier, you just go faster"

[Skinnyone]

Alban Lakata is still n laaitie that cannot be trusted .I would rather trust the old dog,s approach

Alban Lakata has been around for years! he is no laaitie...only came "to fame" when he raced Epic...

[rouxtjie]

It appears you are confused. And confusing me with someone else.

 

OP wanted advice on one or the other. I challenged the Namibian's statement that "Firstly, if you are serious about improving, then a power meter is certainly the way to go."

 

I merely pointed out that an IDT will do a better job as it's repeatable. My opinion, backed by scientific research. No slagging off of power meters.  Challenge statements from a position of knowledge, not opinion.

 

Yes, I commented about how we, as cyclists, waste our money on stuff. I've just bought a set of Zipp wheels with disc brakes. Will they get me up SuikerBossie quicker that Darren Lill? No, but I like them never-the-less. Do I prefer riding on them to looking at my power output? Absolutely.

 

Remember the Greg LeMond saying: "It never get easier, you just go faster"

Well in that case I apologize...assuming you were anti power(putting it down as a fad) and all that. Seems we are seeing eye to eye on it being effective if you know what you are doing and stay motivated to see it through.

 

[namibquest]

Well I stated previously in this thread that I was unhappy with my stages power meter due to bad battery life which seems to come from water ingress problems. I have just had a meeting with the agent who confirmed that they have indeed had a problem with the manufacture of a certain batch of the battery caps and that this has indeed been identified as a legitimate problem. So to GoLefty and the others who were quick to shoot me down by telling me the issue had been resolved and quoting certain standards in terms of waterproof ratings, etc - stages has confirmed there is/was a problem. Without going into too much detail, it seems a certain batch of battery covers were defective which has lead to this situation. I was given a replacement battery cap today and will test it accordingly and provide feedback here. What I can say is that I am impressed in the way that they are going about looking at a solution to solving this, but most importantly that they are prepared to acknowledge that there is indeed a problem.

 

I will certainly give feedback after testing the new covers as to whether this addresses the problem or not. For now, I feel a whole lot better about the product simply because of the way in which they have embraced the issue as opposed to hiding behind excuses about why a lot of us have been experiencing these issues.