IF and TSS for a 6:30+ bike split
Team,
I did a 6 hrs/112 bike race rehearsal in preparation for IM Lake Tahoe on Friday and I thought it went pretty well considering my current fitness. I was unable to complete 112miles before 6hrs and had to stop at 100miles which took 6:03:07 (Moving Time). I was able to stay Aero for the most part and maintain my goal IF of .66. I Consumed 1 1/4 bottles of Gatorade Endurance per hour plus a Power gel every 45 minutes. (Liquid intake was based on my sweat test.)
Here is the Garmin link for the Friday’s ride. https://connect.garmin.com/modern/a.../865627427 . Need some feed back on this ride.
The Saturday ride was a completely different story. My intention was to complete at least 50 - 60 miles. Within the first 30 minutes I knew I could not maintain an IF of .66 as I did on Friday. That was 35% due to tired legs and 65% saddle soreness. I did ride 68 miles though (4:31:04 Moving Time). https://connect.garmin.com/modern/a.../866685909 . I also did have some lingering Achilles pain on Sunday morning after the ride through but it seem to have gone away by Sunday afternoon after some stretching and rolling.
I also am trying to estimate if my race day IF of .66 is a good estimate for IM Lake Tahoe? I used bestbikesplit.com to estimate my bike split at different IF (.66 - .69) and below is what it came up with.
FYI: My FTP is 225 or 3.30 W/kg
|
Time |
6 hours 36 mins 47 secs |
6 hours 34 mins 3 secs |
6 hours 31 mins 25 secs |
6 hours 28 mins 39 secs |
|
Avg. Speed |
16.72 mph |
16.84 mph |
16.95 mph |
17.07 mph |
|
Avg. Power |
140.02 watts |
141.82 watts |
143.66 watts |
145.55 watts |
|
Normalized Power® |
148.28 watts |
150.42 watts |
152.34 watts |
154.26 watts |
|
Variability Index |
1.06 |
1.06 |
1.06 |
1.06 |
|
Intensity Factor® |
0.66 |
0.67 |
0.68 |
0.69 |
|
Training Stress Score® |
288 |
294 |
300 |
306 |
|
Watts/Kg |
2.07 |
2.1 |
2.13 |
2.15 |
The EN bike pacing chart does not have TSS values for splits over 6:30. Is a TSS of 288 safe for a novice runner like me?
Comments
Amulya....this is a difficult question to answer, as there are many "moving parts". While I am no expert, I have similar issues on courses with lots of climbing. I recently was "off the chart" for IM Canada. BBS told me I could ride a 6:21 with IF of 0.67 and relatively low VI (1.05-6ish). That would give me 286TSS points. I ran well at IMTX with ~280TSS in 2014. Due to weather issues at IMC, the ride took me 7:17! My TSS was 303 and the last 4 miles of the run were a combo of walk/run as a result.
I think that chart is very accurate and helpful regarding what kind of TSS you can accumulate and still run....it worked for me both times (once as a testament to success and the latter time as proof that >290TSS = hard to run). Some folks (Tim Cronk for example at IMLP) accumulated some ridiculous TSS of ~330 and still ran like he was being chased by a rabid dog....but he's not human!
If you're not a veteran or experienced/very strong marathoner, I would NOT do more on the bike than ~285TSS. Your marathon will SUCK!
How much climbing does IMT have compared to your 100mile route? Your VI was 1.10....that's too high. If IMT has MORE climbing/steeper climbs than your training route, you will have even more trouble keeping the VI low. The higher the VI, the greater the "cost" to your body and the harder it will be to run. (your average power was 136W, but the cost to your body was the same as if you had ridden at 150W!).
Do you have enough gears for the climbs to be able to keep the VI low?
Coach R has some references in the wiki for what happens at >6:30 on the bike....as best I recall, it was something to the effect of....it's hard to figure out!.....or....things get weird!
I am in the same boat as you on a tough bike course like this. My advice is to try to work on your VI, ride more steady, and adjust your IF goal such that you will not exceed 290TSS.
This is just my $0.02 as someone who has faced the same scenario recently. You might want to PM Dino Sarti...he knows the course well, is a strong and smart cyclist and could probably give you more solid advice than me.
JL
The new IMLT 2015 course dose not have any steep climbs compared to the 100 mile ride I did last weekend. I also did change my cassette to a 12-30 (10 speed) and rode one loop of the course a last month just to do a course recon. My VI for that single loop was 1.09 with an IF of .71 which gave me a TSS of 147 (may be just a tad less if you consider just moving time). Since the course is 2 1/3 loop, I will have to bring down the IF to make sure I dont blow up on the run. I also wasn't paying attention to my numbers too much then since I was also also paying attention the course and making mental notes for potholes/sharp turns/climbs/descends etc.
Here is the link https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/837213442
Based on your input and everything I'm reading, it sounds like a TSS less than 290 seems to be the sweet spot for most people.