Where does power come from?

I have lurked and read this forum for some time. I found the "strength training" thread particularly interesting. In fact, I stopped going to the gym because of it. The question that I still have is: why do bigger riders tend to have greater power outputs. Simple enough - they have bigger muscles. Could that alone be the answer? I know that bigger muscles are stronger, but more powerful? Why? On the face of it that would contradict what was being advocated by Ric Stern.

I'm a 39 year old cyclist who weights only around 53 kg (117 lbs). With an FTP of 250 watts I can climb pretty well for a cat. 3, but I stand no chance in a time trial. It would seem that an average 80kg rider can take 300 watt FTP for granted, while I would have to work my butt off to achieve such a result. Why is that? Would I be better off, bulking up a little to achieve better wattage, maybe even better W/kg?

Then again, perhaps my observations about weight and power are just a figment of my imagination. Fire away.

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An Aussie rider called Cadel Evans, who is very very light, has always been a very good climber, and got the Pink Jersey in the Giro d'Italia a few years ago. He did a lot of work on his strength and won a Gold Medal at the Commonwealth Games in 2002 or maybe 1998 in the time trial. So it can be done, but remember he is a pro and has the best training methods at his disposal. It will be interesting to hear other people's suggestions and ideas, hopefully something will work for you...

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"...too old to be riding a bike..." my former workmates used to say. Screw them. I don't judge people for their lack of interest in exercise. So don't judge me.

Your weight and FTP puts you at 4.7w/kg on the power profile chart that is the high cat 2 low cat 1 level. You should be blowing the doors off of 80kg cat 3 racers that are 3.75w/kg I don't see why you are having a problem with heavier riders.

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Romans 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. http://www.earnharts.com/html/realau...cific.asp?id=3

Reread the thread. You are misunderstanding the limiters for FTP. You are unlikely to be strength limited - the reason you can only do 250W at FTP is because you don't have the fitness to do more than that. Not anything to do with strength or muscle bulk.

The reasons why some riders have higher thresholds are multifactorial, but they include:

Cardiac output (stroke volume, MHR)
Mitochondrial density/muscle enzymes
Capillirisation
Neuromuscular resistance to fatigue
Etc

Not strength

To train these things, you need to ride at appropriate intensities, not push weights around.

Yes, on the face of it I should be able to compete with cat.1/2's. Unfortunately, experience tells me that windy circuit races are not my friend even with cat. 3's . OTOH, I believe that my 4.7 W/kg is a result of more recent power-based training and only time will tell if the chart is accurate with respect to categories .

Also, I recall reading in this forum that W/kg is not as important in a time trial as pure wattage. The question still remains: Is it feasible to bulk up to increase one's potential without losing the W/kg advantage. I suppose all cyclists bulk up a little over time, and yet they get better.

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They're not necessarily more powerful, but if developed to an equally high degree of fitness they are likely to be. Why? Because each muscle cell is not just a unit which contracts to produce force, but is also an engine which produces energy to sustain the process. A big rider with more little engines producing energy is going to be able to produce more power than a smaller rider with fewer little engines (assuming both are equally trained).

Thanks for your reply. I don't think I misunderstood the thread. My issue is that I've observed larger cyclists generally having larger power outputs - not due to their training, but due to their size. I'm not claiming that an 80 kg newbie will beat me in a race, only that he'll output 250 watts as a cat. 5, while it will take me 3 years to get to that point. I don't think this is an issue of freak talent either. I'm talking about all other things being equal. I'm having a hard time believing that Andre the Giant would output only 250 W at FT after 3 years of training.

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I doubt it. Bulking up typically implies muscle hypertrophy, which means that the individual cells grow (as opposed to growing *more* cells). As each cell grows, it's ability to produce force grows, but it's ability to produce energy does not. Your W/kg will go down as a result.

Edit: However, even though your W/kg goes down, you're still likely to be somewhat more competitive in flat TT's and windy circuit races.

Learn to sit in. Bettini does alright and he's not massive. Tactics, tactics, tactics.

No. There is no reason to want to bulk up.

No they don't. If they did bulk up, there is no reason to think that this would lead to them getting better.

Then why shouldn't I strive to have more little engines? Don't get me wrong, I still will spend my time on the bike, but this came to my mind and I think it wasn't addressed with respect to how bigger muscles have bigger power potential. I know, "Go re-read the thread" .

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Aha! Now we're getting somewhere and it makes more sense.

P.S. Doesn't this discussion seems strangely "Live"?

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Sorry, we don't get to choose our body type (and see my other response about bulking up through weightlifting). We can choose where we live and race, though. May I suggest a nice spot in the mountains?

The Tour of Utah passes right by my house. And I ride the same 8% 6 mile climb in the summer (see avatar).

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Why resort to theoretical arguments and appeals to authority when you can do the experiment and find out for yourself?

Go to the gym and make your leg muscles bigger then see what happens.

Well, thanks to good books, teachers, and online forums I may not have too. I sure hope you don't provide that answer to your kids when they ask you about gravity .

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