In recent years, power meters have become more available and affordable to cyclists. Some power systems are more accurate than others and the actual numbers produced on one system are relative to that system. In other words, if you produce 200 watts at a given metabolic rate on one system that number may or may not match the same metabolic rate on a different power system.  Accurate calibrations can help ensure accuracy from system to system, but know there are inaccuracies within systems.

A short while ago, some folks began poo-pooing heart rate monitors in favor of power meters on bikes, giving the impression that power meters are a gold-standard system not influenced by outside factors. Even the most accurate systems are affected by outside factors. The power numbers you produce on the bike, just like the heart rate numbers you produce, are influenced by heat, humidity, overall fatigue and dehydration to name a few.

Similar to using a clock for timing running or swimming intervals, a power meter can be an excellent tool to gauge pace, or more accurately, a rate of mechanical energy conversion. In a simplified view and assuming calibrated systems, the person that can produce the highest wattage per kilogram of body, plus bike weight will be the fastest rider.

If you decide to train with power, notice how your heart rate responds to the power-based intervals and how you feel. Combining heart rate, power and rating of perceived exertion is the best of all worlds. There are times you will notice that the three numbers may not match past performances for a given situation. If this happens, evaluate what might cause this to happen. Know that your fitness, life stresses, weather, course profile, current fatigue levels and other items affect the numbers.

Take away points

• If you are producing 200 watts on your power meter, you may or may not be traveling faster than the person riding with you on the road, producing 200 watts on his or her power meter.

• Power meters need to be calibrated on a regular basis by the owner and on occasion by the manufacturer.

• Power output is affected by many of the same items that affect heart rate and perceived exertion numbers.

• Power, heart rate, pace, speed and rating of perceived exertion are all tools. Using the tools and properly interpreting the data can help you improve speed and endurance.

• No single tool is without faults.

I haven't seen the full journal article yet, I'll keep you posted. I'm curious to learn the percentages of enhanced performance and decreased lactate accumulation. Also, I'm curious to see if the authors indicate a translation to human application.

From the International Journal of Sports Medicine

DOI: 10.1055/s-0028-1104574

"Caffeine and Taurine Enhance Endurance Performance"

T. F. Imagawa, et al.

Abstract

Caffeine enhances endurance performance; however, its effect on accumulated lactate remains unclear. Conversely, taurine, which also enhances endurance performance, decreases accumulated lactate. In this study, the effect of combination of caffeine and taurine on endurance performance was assessed. Mice ran on a treadmill, and the accumulated lactate was measured. In addition, muscle fibers from the gastrocnemius muscle of the mice were stained with ATPase and analyzed. The use of caffeine and taurine over a 2 week period enhanced endurance performance. Moreover, taurine significantly decreased the accumulated concentration of lactate over long running distances. However, the diameter of the cross-sections and ratios of Types I, IIA, and IIB muscle fibers were not affected.

PS...Caffeine and Taurine are ingredients in popular energy drinks.

Over the past few weeks I've had a few questions about how to move workouts around and how to modify workouts within a training plan. While I can't answer every individual training question, I can give you examples of modifying a training plan, the whys and hows. You'll have to apply the information to your own personal situation.

As we progress through this discussion in upcoming blogs (no, not all future blogs will be dedicated to my training), it is easiest to use myself as the main example with a sprinkling of some workout combination examples from individual athletes that I've trained over the years. For privacy purposes, the athletes will remain unnamed unless they choose to chime-in on a blog comment.

To consolidate information, first are the stats for what is a typical training week for me, versus a rest week. For this time of the year:

Monday: 30 minutes of strength training work, 1:00 yoga (the yoga is new this season)

Tuesday: 1:00-1:15 swim, 30 minute run

Wednesday: 1:00-2:00 road or mountain bike

Thursday: 1:00-1:15 swim, 1:00-1:30 trail run

Friday: Day off or 1:00 road ride

Saturday: 2:00-3:00 mountain bike ride

Sunday: 2:00-4:00 road ride

Looking at my log, a typical training week is in the 13:00 range. This includes strength training and yoga time. Last week I intentionally scheduled a rest week, to coincide with a heavy work week. Training time was at 8:00.

For those of you that follow me on Twitter I will now post exceptions to this typical week and try to include more details about the specifics of the workouts when I post a single workout. For this week, it has been pretty much to plan for volume.

Some recent exceptions and special items to note:

• A couple of weeks ago I went to Fruita and Moab for five days of mountain biking. This was an intentional "crash" training week. The crash-part associated with the volume and intensity of training compared to normal and not the fall-off-your-bike kind of crash.

• My Monday through Sunday volume for the two weeks around Moab was 17:00 and 15:00. In this case, it is more important to look at Wednesday through Tuesday training volume directly surrounding the trip. Total aerobic training for that seven-day block was 17:00 with "out" time (time spent looking at maps, eating, etc.) at 20:15. This is a big block for me and most every day included some intensity due to the nature of mountain biking.

• I must be rested going into a crash training block and I must recover on the back side of it to reap the benefits.

• I intentionally delayed my recovery some, due to a planned heavy week of work. I felt it too. I didn't feel good in my workouts and fully recovered until yesterday.

• Training volume was cut by 60% (my 8 hour week was 40 percent of my 20-hour week) to enhance recovery. I can't give you exact numbers, but the volume of training intensity was cut as well, but some minimal intensity was included in the recovery week.

Summary key items:

1. As I've said before, consistency trumps all. My training volume is fairly consistent.

2. The body adapts to consistency and in order to get better results, training must change.

3. How to change training can come in the form of changing variables such as overall training volume, individual workout volume, overall volume of intensity, individual workout intensity, mix of sports, frequency of workouts and timing of workouts. I'm probably missing a few items here, but this gets most of them.

4. You will see improvements in speed and/or endurance after a training stimulus, time and rest.

With this start of foundation knowledge, we can use it to discuss more training and self-coaching concepts.

Yesterday's group ride was the monthly trek to Estes Park. Though the weather looked threatening in the mountains before our departure, we lucked out and had great conditions. My buddy Ed noted, "Gale's Group looks for the biggest, darkest clouds around and then rides into them. Geeze." (Note Ed was leading the charge more than once.)

On Twitter I noted a fair amount of time riding at lactate threshold (LT). Though I am training for an event that will take me some 10-11 hours (if all goes well) I include LT training. For some of my Ironman event athletes, I include very fast group rides or bike racing. Why?

I have written about this issue before and it is worth repeating:

The Ability to Recover From Short Efforts at Lactate Threshold and Above

Most of a seven- to 12-hour race is done at an aerobic effort. However, in a mountain bike race that involves altitude and time cuts, efforts above lactate threshold intensity are necessary. (Lactate threshold (LT) intensity is roughly the intensity and associated heart rate that you could hold in a one-hour, all-out time trial.)

One method to improve performance in an ultra-distance event is to build a solid base of fitness over several weeks or months, followed by six to eight weeks of increasing LT heart rate as well as power at LT without building much (if any) training volume. Follow this block by returning to building event endurance to a peak, while allowing enough time for a good taper.

Why increase LT to be competitive at an ultra-distance mountain bike event? If your lactate threshold moves from 80 to 90 percent of your maximum heart rate, you've increased the capacity of your aerobic engine. For example, if your maximum heart rate is 185 and you can move your lactate threshold from a heart rate of 148 to 167, you've got more aerobic engine. All of this takes time and a reasonable progression.

Athletes who try to do everything at oncebuild training volume, increase strength, and increase the volume of training intensity at LT or abovewill often end up ill or injured. The body takes time to make the physical adaptations to training. Cramming for race day, unlike cramming for a college test, doesn't work. Athletes who cram will only build enough endurance to complete the event, instead of enough to be competitive.

Moving from training topics to fashion topics, the group ride was ooohing and aaaaahing over Ryan Lewandowski's Blue Sky Velo kit. The photo doesn't really do the kit justice, but the attention to detail on this kit is outstanding. (Colors, arm and leg warmers of differing colors blending into the jersey and shorts, print design, chevrons, sublimated print on the back of the vest that makes the print look 3-D when riding behind Ryan...)

Ryan did an outstanding job of modeling the kit and upholding his reputation of being a cycling fashionisto. (I did note he wasn't wearing his extra-cool pearl-finish cycling shoes yesterday.) Anyway, people did want to know who designed the kit. Ryan?