- Power meters are a fantastic tool for training
and also a perfect tool to get the most out of your event,
as well as getting the best
out of your own personal fitness.
- That's right, so, we are going to
give you some tips fairly shortly
on how to do just that, using me as an example
and how I'm going to use numbers to perfectly pace
the Maratona dles Dolomites here in Alta Badia.
(upbeat music)
- One of the most beautiful yet brutal aspects
of the Maratona is that there's hardly any flat.
Straight from the start, you've got the Campolongo,
then onto the Pordoi, then the Sella, etc.
The climbs come thick and fast.
- And what that means, is that it's very easy
to go too hard at the start.
So, let's try to make a pacing strategy
based on known fitness levels.
- Yeah, now first off, you're going to need to know
your FTP, your functional threshold power
and if you don't already know it
and don't know how to do it,
there is a link at the end of the video
to show you exactly how to work that out.
- Yeah, well, based on recent tests, my current FTP
is around about 300 watts, but you're also going to need
to take into account your weight,
because that is going affect
how fast you can go up climbs given your current FTP.
- Now, we've actually taken the time to work out
exactly how much climbing is in this event,
so I hope you're sat down.
First off, 4230 metres of elevation gain
and that totals 53 and a half kilometres
of up hill riding with an average gradient
of seven point nine per cent.
That's pretty punchy isn't it?
- That's very tough indeed.
And if you go onto the bike calculator website online
and shove in some numbers including my weight,
which is 71 kilogrammes and my threshold of 300 watts,
even if I did all of that climbing at my threshold
of 300 watts, it would take me over two and a half hours
and that is just not possible.
- So, how do we work out Dan's pacing?
Well, the answer actually lies within our top ten
most commonly used cycling phrases.
- Epic.
(dramatic music)
- It might be epic Dan, but on this particular occasion,
the word I'm looking for is actually tempo,
otherwise known as zone three.
Now, zone three is a pace that you can ride at,
well you should be able to ride at,
for around three hours, or even more,
if you have little breaks.
Now, of course in the Maratona,
there are plenty of breaks in the form of multiple descents.
Now, in terms of your FTP, you should be riding
at between 75 and 90 per cent of your FTP,
which for you Dan, works out at roughly
between 230 and 270 watts.
- [Dan] Now going back to our bike calculator,
if I average, let's say 250 watts for the climbs,
those 53 and a half kilometres of climbing
would take me a little over four hours
and I'd say that's just about doable for me
with those descents to break things up.
So, what I will be doing is making sure
I don't go above 250 watts average on the first four climbs,
they being the Campolongo, the Pordoi,
the Sella and the Gardena,
and that way, as long as I fuel myself properly,
I should get to the last three climbs
with enough left in the tank to get through
and possibly even lift my pace on the last climb,
which is the hardest.
- So, how does this equate to other events?
Now, firstly and importantly,
you need to know how long the event would take you
and secondly, the nature of the course.
Now, this table by Doctor Andy Coggan of the seven zones,
will actually help you further understand
what exactly the power zones are and more importantly,
how long you can spend in each of the zones
in one single effort.
- Now, if your sportive gran fondo is relatively flat
for the most part but then with a big final climb
up towards the finish, a bit like the L'Etape du Tour
in 2017 then you should be able to expect
to conserve quite a bit of energy
over that first flatter part by surfing the wheels
and staying out of the wind.
And then, you should be able to expect
to do that final climb at the lower end of zone four,
which is quite close to your FTP.
All you need to do, is make sure that over that first part,
your average power remains in the endurance zone,
so, for me with an FTP of 300 watts,
that would mean an average power in that first part
of less than 225 watts.
- Hmm, on the other hand, if your sportive or event
is consistently hilly but without any long climbs,
then normalised power is a fantastic tool
as that takes into account the shorter, sharper efforts.
But, if you do do that, it's important to remember
that your normalised power should sit
within the zone that you know you can sustain
the whole duration of the event.
- Yeah, now, before we finish, we should add
one last caveat to all of this,
and that is that for two riders of the same FTP,
let's say 300 watts, the rider that does twenty hours
on the bike each week, might be slightly more efficient
than somebody that does it with just five hours
on the bike each week.
So, you should bear that in mind when you're working out
at what end of each zone you are aiming to sustain
for the duration of the event.
So, take for example, the tempo zone, zone three,
that ranges from 75 to 90 per cent.
If you're spending an enormous amount of time
on the bike each week, you could aim
for the higher end of that zone,
but if you're only spending a few hours
on the bike each week, you might want to
aim for the lower part.
- Yeah, now, for some more training content,
or content that's anything to do with cycling,
how about clicking just here on the globe
to subscribe to Global Cycling Network.
It is absolutely free.
Now, to learn how to calculate your FTP,
your functional threshold power, click just down here.
- Yeah, or if normalised power is quite an alien term to you
and you want to learn about that and a whole host
of other training metrics to do with power,
there's a video explaining it all, just down here.