A Cold November

November has been a cold month, colder than normal even for Wisconsin. I've done a couple of rides outdoors, but both were frigid. Temps of around 30 degrees, but with a 15-20 mile wind. Not a lot of fun. While I don't have the coldest weather gear, I do have pretty good gear. But inevitably, some extremity gets cold and you are wondering what the fastest way home is.

So I've been spending a lot of time on the CompuTrainer at Recyclist. Well, not a lot of time, but I have been making it to ride a couple times a week. Generally I get an hour in on a course that is 16-20 miles. I've been pleased with the workout get on the CompuTrainer, and so far I haven't been bored riding it for an hour or so each time I go in.

What really excites me about the CompuTrainer though is all of the data that it collects and shows you. One feature is the built in power meter. On most of my rides, I've been averaging 200 watts. On a couple, I've averaged 211 watts. What I am interested in is how I can train over the winter and even into the spring to see that number improve. How much can I improve it? 10%? 25%? I rally have no feel for what I can do because I've never trained with power before. But having that instant feedback is useful.

One of the things that I have noticed about myself is that I fatigue about 40 minutes into the ride. I can see the power I'm generating drop off as teh ride goes along. For example, early in the ride tonight, I was averaging around 230 watts. By the end, my average was 211 watts. And in the late stages, I was a lot of times generating 195-205 watts. So this tells me something, that I need to work on my muscular endurance and being able to maintain a power output for a longer period of time. I'd like to improve that average power number by becoming more powerful overall, but I also ned to improve it by becoming more consistent through an hour long ride.

I used another feature for the first time tonight. We hooked up the cadence sensor to my bike and monitored my pedal stroke. The CompuTrainer will tell you a number of things. First, it will give you splits between your left and right legs, so you can see if one is dominant. For me, I know my right leg is a little stronger, and that showed sometimes, but for the most part, I was more even then I thought I would be. Secondly, the CompuTrainer will also analyze your stroke in terms of how even and smooth your power output is during the stroke. Clearly, everyone is going to be more powerful on their down stroke and I am no exception. But it also gives you a measure on a scale of 1-100 of how smooth and consistent throughout the stroke you are. Tonight, I was averaging around a 60. I am not sure of what this number means in absolute terms. But what I can use it for is a measure of how much I can improve. Some high cadence speed drills would probably help me. If it makes my pedal stroke more efficient, that will show up in more power and less fatigue. I have more to learn about this, but I find it exciting that I have some tools to help me measure how I am performing.

I think I've rode the CompuTrainer 7 times now and have about 125 CompuTrainer miles. Its not perfect. Its not as interesting as being out on the road. You are pedaling in one plane because you never have to go around a corner or up a hill. Yes, the resistance adjusts, but its not the same as the angle of the bike changing. But at the same time, when its 22 degrees outside, I'd rather be on the CompuTrainer, and it does give me a lot of tools that I didn't have before. I want to keep up twice a week, keep varying courses, and see how I can start making some quantifiable improvements.