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Power meter

new2703new2703
in General Training Discussions

 I'm a new user to power and have a quick question.  During the course of my rides/ training sessions the power numbers jump around alot.  Is this normal or a result of some pedaling technique issue?

Comments

  • BeckyHBeckyH
    I've been riding with power now for about 3 months, and it is normal. You'll get used to it once you corelate how your legs feel with what power you are aiming for. I changed the settings on my main screen ( garmin 910 XT user) to use 3s power avg to eliminate some of the 'jumping', but it happens, IME.
  • Nate ParadyNate Parady
    Its normal: I have my Joule setup to show me the 10sec average so this smooths the data out a bit. but even while trying to hold steady watts you will still see the numbers jump around within a certain range. That range is a matter of how good you are at holding steady watts. RnP and other experienced power meter users can dial up 200 watts and hold steady, while ME (new to power) I might see a range of 20-30 watts (or even more) plus or minus. Still working on the steady skill outdoors but getting better with each ride.
    -as you get better your ability to maintain and hold steady watts will improve. Easier on a trainer (IMHO) and harder outside. You will also start to learn and develop a more complete effecient pedal stroke as you now have feedback on how you are actually generating watts. i.e. if you just push down on the pedals you generate xx watts but if you apply pressure throughout the entire pedal stroke you will see yy watts, usually more for me.
    -Lots of good articles in the wiki and fourms on developing the skill of riding steady i.e same watts going up hill, downhill, on a flat. developing this skill is key for IM race execution. (i'm still working on this one)..
    -I would say at this point I'm only trying to ride steady about 10 percent of the time as practice, other 90 percent is trying to go fast so i can get stronger on the bike. lots of surging, even some standing...I spend more time looking at IF for the given interval versus the current watts...I'll just hit interval on my joule every now and then based on terrain or time.

    hope that helps,
  • steveperxsteveperx
    This is normal, definitely. The way I use power is to first set up the computer to show you a rolling average, as Nate suggested. It smooths out the display and makes it less jumpy. I use 3s rolling avg on my Garmin. I also have the display set up to show me the smoothed "instantaneous" power, normalized power and average power (average meaning the average over the entire ride or the entire interval).

    For interval work, I'm trying to keep all three of these numbers very close to each other at all times, and completely disregard my speed. The 3s rolling will still jump around, but if you can keep NP and AP close, then you're riding very consistently, which is what we want to do for IM and HIM racing.
  • foolio_mugooliofoolio_mugoolio
    For the joule I don't think there is a NP value available is there? I don't recall seeing that option.
  • Al TruscottAl Truscott

    As you get used to glancing briefly at your current watts while riding, your brain will get used to the range you "want" to be in. Say you want to be riding @ 180; you'll fall into knowing that a range of, say, 160-200 is OK, 140 or 220 is not. You'll stop worrying about the fluctuations, and feel "safe" within your range.

    Also, if you have a Joule, you can set IF (intensity factor) as one of the metrics displayed. And, you can chunk the ride into intervals, so you can see the IF of the interval you are in (not current, cumulative to that point in time in that interval). If you're doing a 10 minute interval @ 100% of FTP, you'll know that you want that IF to be 0.95-1.0 - below that, work harder, above that, you're going too hard. Works for any interval longer than 30 sec.

  • Peter GreaggPeter Greagg
    All good advice here.
    I have a Joule with a Powertap and when I am out on a ride where I just want to crush it in a hammerfest, I look at power and normalised power (Pnorm) and keep trying to push my current watts above Pnorm — which pushes up the IF.
    Good stuff in the Wiki eg http://members.endurancenation.us/Resources/Wiki/tabid/108/Default.aspx?topic=EN+Power+Training+Resources and this on riding stready and training vs racing http://members.endurancenation.us/Resources/Wiki/tabid/108/Default.aspx?topic=Riding+Steady:+Training+vs+Racing
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