Our next race is just one week away: Rev3 Quassy half iron distance, in Middlebury, CT on June 3. I’m super excited for this race; so far, I think it’s my favorite half-distance course, especially the bike, which I wrote about last year after doing the race for the first time.
During the past week, Coach Vince and I have been working out the race plan. For the first time, I will use the information from my power meter (as well as heart rate) to execute the cycling portion of the plan.
When I picked up the power meter at my favorite bike shop (shout out to Pro Pedals in Hammonton, NJ!), I thought to myself: Yeah, baby, POWER! Time to get super strong, be a super fast triathlete, and start pushing MAAAAADDD watts. Elite Age Grouper Status: HERE. I. COME.
Um, well, yeaahhhh, it’s not quite like that–as I’m learning.
Apparently, the power meter, once purchased, does not automatically transform you into a monster cyclist. There is still some work involved.
Hmmph. Go figure.
The power meter is an emotionless teacher, who gives it to you straight. No sugar coating. It doesn’t care if your feelings are hurt to find out what a piss poor cyclist you are. It’s only concerned with the truth of your effort.
Right from the very first test ride, the data from the power meter illustrates all of my flaws and weaknesses in a graph that sort of looks like the EKG of a person in cardiac arrest. The first time I looked at my power chart, I thought for sure I accidentally downloaded the medical charts of a heart attack victim or someone with a severe arrhythmia.
Sure, heart rate fluctuates – but nothing like this massacre.
To loosely paraphrase Vince, “Power tells you how hard you are working, and heart rate indicates your body’s response to that work.” Because of this, heart rate tends to present itself as a steadier number than power. In fact, you can overshoot your power in little increments, but your heart rate might not even register a single beat increase. Apparently, that’s the mistake I make – a lot.
When Vince gives me a heart rate number, I can dial it in and keep it steady – usually within 1-3 beats (depending on terrain and weather). I like the predictability and steadiness of my ticker.
Power – yeah, not so much. My range ventolin varies widely, about 60-80 watts, and sometimes within a single second. I could be tooling along at 150 watts, and then bang boom to the moon, I’m pushing well over 200 watts in a mere fraction of second. Add these little blips up over the course of 112 miles, and I could be asking for biiiigggg trouble come marathon time. (Note: I find the experience of using a power meter on the road is different than the power data from the CompuTrainer, on which I find it easier to maintain a steadier effort.)
Vince assures me that through some voodoo magic training, I will ultimately be able to control my power numbers within a more finite range – perhaps only 10-20 watts of variation. If he says so. So far, all of his other predictions have come true. I have to believe this one will too.
I decided to raid my savings and invest in the power meter because I truly believe it is a tool that will help me become a better cyclist and more strategic triathlete.
Sure, I was a bit overly optimistic about how long it would take my power meter and me to get into the magical land of 20 mph averages for long distance rides.
Turns out–not surprisingly–you still have to do the work. The power meter isn’t magic. But it is a valuable tool that adds another layer of precision to the analysis of my abilities. As I learn from the data it provides, I can make adjustments in my cycling. And, that’s when the magic happens: after several more months of hard–yet highly focused–work.
From one perspective, I can perceive the power meter as providing yet another set of metrics for determining how much I suck as a cyclist. Goodness knows, it sure does that.
Yet, seen from another (better!) perspective, I understand how it is offering me an opportunity to work on those areas where I can find more power, which translates in more speed, and faster times.
As with all goals worth achieving, this won’t happen after only a few weeks. It will happen after I put in the mental and physical effort required to become the athlete I need to be to achieve my goals this year, and the next. But, make no mistake, IT. WILL. HAPPEN.
Do you use a power meter? Why or why not? What are your experiences in get used to using the device?
