HOW TO MEASSURE AND TRACK TSS (for dummies)
Could not find on my own (in wiki) how to measure and (properly) track TSS.
Can somebody kindly point me in the right direction?
Tks!!!
0
Could not find on my own (in wiki) how to measure and (properly) track TSS.
Can somebody kindly point me in the right direction?
Tks!!!
Comments
A score of 100 TSS equals an effort at your threshold for one hour!
I use WKO+ and TrainingPeaks - perfect combination IMHO as WKO in unbeaten in terms of power analysis
BTW TrainingPeaks can calculate swimTSS but its still in alpha stadium
http://members.endurancenation.us/Resources/Wiki/tabid/91/Default.aspx?topic=EN+Power+Training+Resources
A quick primer on definitions and basic uses can be found here, just scroll down the list and look for the power and TSS articles:
http://home.trainingpeaks.com/articles.aspx
To completely geek out you can always join the bike specific group on google. Just be aware these guys area REALLY into the data, but it's interesting reading.
http://groups.google.com/group/wattage
Lastly if you have some time on your hands you can sit through this webinar which gets pretty detailed.
Personally I use WKO+ for capturing all of my files from the various sources.
Have fun.
..decide how much more I can work on a big bike week, eg, I knew last week in Tucson, I could increase my TSS/day up to about 160, so that determined how far and hard I biked each day. from past experience, I know that Ican jump my CTL (avg TSS/day for the recent past) by 150-200%. So I made sure not to exceed 170/ day while in Tucson, so I could jeep up my HIM plan on return.
...Help me decide when to back off to avoid overtraining. EG,coming back, my Training Stress Balance (TSB) was down below -30, and I had started at + 1. So today, I just did body work, instead of planned run intervals, deferred now to tomorow. But I wont have to rest several days, or lose any training days, just modify things a bit, as I saw the TSB go down.
... Help monitor pre race taper, by titrating my workload back slowly to keep a neg TSB until a week before IM, then bring it above 0, heading towards + 20 by race day.
All this really takes personal experience with your own data and learning how it works for you. There is no magic formula that everyone can use,so its best to follow the ATL,CTL, TSB (all the metrics calculated from TSS) through several training cycles to see how it plays out in relation to your body.
@Al, if I may ask you, how do you calculate your run TSS from your GARMIN? (I Looks for TSS on mine and did not find that function therefore I guess it is a manual / formula operation?
Hey Juan, I hope you're back on track in SP.
When I enter the Garmin file into WKO, WKO automagically calculates the TSS for that run, based on my previously entered VDOT-based speeds. The process I use, in brief:
There are two other ways to do this, one using the WKO transfer program called Device Agent, the other uploading to the online version of WKO+, called TrainingPeaks.com but they allprovide the same date, and allow you to combine both running and biking into the Performance Management Chart (swimming too, thru manual entry) so you can follow the TSS-based metrics of ATL, CTL, and TSB, as well as many other charts covering power, HR, etc.
I have no doubt that if you either buy WKO+ or sign up for the online subscription based TrainingPeaks, and start playing with it, you'll figure all this out fairly quickly. Unless you take the trouble to load in historical data from previous rides and runs (it can be done in a batch manner), you will need to be patient as the data accumulates over weeks, months, and years, to start to be able to use the PMChart pro-actively.
Al, I have made good progress in tracking TSS but need your wisdom on two issues:
1) WKO does not calculate SWIM TSS ... how do I calculate manually?
2) How does one define which is the ideal TSS score throughout the weeks and most important in those weeks leading to an A race (which I have coming up in three weeks).
Tks
Juan
1. I'm following the advice given by others here in EN, which is to make a manual workout entry, and fill in the time and the IF, using 0.8 as a proxy for most swim workouts. I adjust between 0.75 and 0.82 depending on how hard I worked and how little I rested (more rest = lower IF). I adjust basically by seeing what my km/hour is for the workout (total distance, divided by total time including rests). For me, 2.9 = 0.82, 2.8 = 0.8, 2.7 = 0.78, and 2.6 = 0.75. But YMMV, literally.
2. This is both a very complicated topic, and one you should really not worry about @ this time. Basically, just do the workouts as prescribed, and let the TSS fall where it will. Over time (meaning multiple seasons), you can begin to understand how to use the TSS as a predictor of how good your taper is, and when it might be time to back off to avoid overtraining, over reaching, or burnout, etc. But when just starting out with the PMC, it's best to just record the data and observe it. I will say that in the final week before your race, your training stress balance (TSB) should turn positive, maybe into the teens or low twenties by the morning of race day.
@Al, Question if I may: I have not been able to figure out how to input IF manually (for the swim) on WKO+. Any tips for dummies?? Tks
I'm new to Trainingpeaks (as of today...). I have used WKO+ in the past to analyze single files (FTP tests, RR's, and race files) but never tracked my data on a consecutive basis. I have been putting in some bigger weeks and am definitely been feeling it in my legs. My body is definitely telling me I should dial it back a bit, especially with the gruelling AmZof race coming up in 6 days. So I took the plunge and signed up for Trainingpeaks Premium and just uploaded my last 3 months worth of data (I had it all in Garmin Connect and estimated my swim stuff)... I started my PMC data with the average CTL and ATL that I had been seeing because I was pretty constant for a while in training to estimate my TSB for the time period before my data uploads.
My CTL (blue line) is certainly moving up and to the right and has been steadily for a month or so now. As of today my TSB (yellow line) is currently -44. My question is how negative can most of you take your TSB and for how long before you break? I hope to get it back somewhere closer to 0 by AmZof, but then plan to drill it lower again for the two weeks after that before Quassy HIM.
I know it's a personal thing that I have to figure out over time, but how negatively have you all taken TSB (successfully or unsuccessfully)? Also, my weekly TSS has been in the 700-800 range. What is normal for this (for HIM or IM training)? If there such a thing as "normal" weekly TSS?
JW: I'll bring my little netbook where I keep my WKO data to AmZof, and we can have a roundtable discussion on PMC Saturday before the race? Mike G is also pretty knowledgeable about Training Peaks and we should corral him in too.
I just know there are so many little nuances about using PMCs that trying to do it in a forum thread gets frustrating. There are variables which can affect comparisons between individuals, like what starting values you use, what constant you use (for CTL and ATL), what type of training you are doing, whether you include swims or not, etc etc that trying to focus on specific numbers is almost fruitless. I can share the things I've learned about myself and my numbers over the years, and we can talk about strategies for using the data in a give and take setting.