General question about testing for everyone...

mpalios

All, I was thinking as I was reading through some of the awesome results most folks are doing, particularly the first time EN team members (me included).

I was curious if ONE of the reasons the results are so much improved isn't just actual improvements, ie we've gotten that much stronger, but more that we're not 'scared' to push the envelope a little bit more now vs. the first test.  Maybe the improved numbers are tied to 'confidence' and that mental factor, almost as much as a true increase in power.

Am I off base?

delesh

No, I don't think you are off base. Part of the OS is training your mental six pack. There will definitely be increases due to the improved toughness and ability to deal with pain. I also think there are increases due to better pacing and knowing how and when to push.

Mike Hedman

I would agree with what David replied. And a lot of it depends on what kind of shape people come into the OS with in the first place. I started this OS with maybe 3 rides in the 6 months leading up to the OS.

Nemo Brauch

What David and Mike said. Noobes always seem to see bigger up front improvements than the second or third year vets. Some of this is 'cause you have more to gain, and some of it is coming up the learning curve of how to take the test, and then some of it is that mental six pack and learning what "work" really is.

Coach Rich

Good discussion, which we see/hear about this time every year. Typically, people new to EN or to the OS:

1. Have only been defining training in terms of volume: minutes/hours at Zone X, with no concept of what they were actually trying to acheive, not working within a system that measures inputs (work performed) and outputs (testing results achieved). So it take some adjustment to drop all focus on time and instead focus on intensity and work performed.
2. We hear this a lot: "Wow, before EN/the OS I thought I was working hard...NOT!! Now I know what hard work is and, more importantly, I see how work WORKS. I do the work and it works...I get faster....duh!!" So often the gains we see in the 2nd and 3rd rounds of test is people becoming more familiar with the pain and discomfort for going very hard, something they've never really done or experienced before.
3. Switching to training with power and/or pace adds another component to this evolution, as you always have a number that tells you exactly how much work you are/are not doing, all the time. That's a BIG eye opener.