Anyone want to help me interpret lab #s

[aslanspaws]

Hey folks,

Just got in my lab numbers from last August (the test was my payment for participation in a study). At the time I was an untrained cyclist, having only trained for two months prior to that (458 miles, 30 hours or so on the bike).

Here's the data:

Height: 180.9cm
Weight: 74.5kg
VO2max (relative) 50.2
VO2max (absolute) 3.79
Ventilatory threshold (%V.O2max): ~76%
- HR at Vthreshold - 180
- Watts @ Vthreshold - 210
HRmax - 208
Body Fat% - 12.57

I just bought Joe Friel's book and will be making my way through that soon as this year is my first full year of cycling/racing.

I'm curious as to what these numbers point to in terms of strengths and weaknesses. What do they say about the style of racing I may be best at, etc. Any general comments are welcome.

I understand that these aren't the only numbers I should pay attention to, nor the most important ones, but I'd be interested in any comments you have on how I should tackle to year to gain the most.

For the record, I've dropped 2kg since the test. I also took three months off during the winter, so I expect that my numbers have not significantly changed since these tests were done.

Thanks

 

[BullGod]

Hey folks,

Just got in my lab numbers from last August (the test was my payment for participation in a study). At the time I was an untrained cyclist, having only trained for two months prior to that (458 miles, 30 hours or so on the bike).

Here's the data:

Height: 180.9cm
Weight: 74.5kg
VO2max (relative) 50.2
VO2max (absolute) 3.79
Ventilatory threshold (%V.O2max): ~76%
- HR at Vthreshold - 180
- Watts @ Vthreshold - 210
HRmax - 208
Body Fat% - 12.57

I just bought Joe Friel's book and will be making my way through that soon as this year is my first full year of cycling/racing.

I'm curious as to what these numbers point to in terms of strengths and weaknesses. What do they say about the style of racing I may be best at, etc. Any general comments are welcome.

I understand that these aren't the only numbers I should pay attention to, nor the most important ones, but I'd be interested in any comments you have on how I should tackle to year to gain the most.

For the record, I've dropped 2kg since the test. I also took three months off during the winter, so I expect that my numbers have not significantly changed since these tests were done.

Thanks

If you were untrained your VO2 max should (hopefully) have improved a bit since then, as 50 is quite low. But it also depends on your age. http://www.brianmac.demon.co.uk/vo2max.htm

It is difficult for anyone to say what kind of racing you should do from these numbers. If you had power averages for your best efforts at different durations we could possibly see a profile.

I think you could lose another 2kg to be honest, and also get that fat % single digits if possible.

HR max is fairly irrelevant. It is indicative of stroke volume I guess - a lower HR max in a trained individual means a larger stroke volume and vice versa.

is watts at Vthreshold the watts reading at lactic threshold? I have no idea how "good" 210 is, but I saw Adam Hansen from T-Mobile's test and he was 370.

I think a more useful number would be your MAP (max absolute power?) from an incremental loading test. Get to 460 and your world class......anything close to 400 is pretty good. I would estimate you could get to 260 - 300 - the data I have seen seems to show that watts at lactate threshold is usually about 75-80% of MAP. I really don't know very much on this though, so you should hope Rix Stern, Timan or someone gets on board.

Your Functional threshold power is also a great way of assessing your condition. That's the average wattage over about an hour.

If you are a beginner my advice is to train sensibly (don't overdo it and train for the races you do - ie. don't do 5 hr mountain rides all the time if you want to race flat crits) and try out the different races available to you - see what you like, and see what you're good at.

 

[daveryanwyoming]

... I think a more useful number would be your MAP (max absolute power?) ...

Would that be Maximum Aerobic Power?

 

[gimpy_calfee]

Aslan...
The numbers don't really help you much.
Vo2 is trainable, so in an untrained state, it might give you an inkling of your potential, but that's about all.
For the future, read as much as you can here and in various books available (Allen/Coggan's book on power training, Friel etc). Decide what your strengths and weaknesses are and what you enjoy. Then specifically train for what you want to accomplish.

Scott

 

[aslanspaws]

Thanks guys.

I am a beginner, and hope to improve these numbers over the course of the season (this would all be kinda of pointless if I didn't huh). I believe the ventalitory threshold is my lactic threshold. So 210w is pretty low I'm sure. But as a percentage of my Vo2max it seems decent (for a beginner).

I think you're right Bullgod, losing a few lbs will help. I'm down to 72kg already, and hope to be down to 70kg by season's end. I just don't want to push that too quickly. Also, the test I did for VO2max was a ramp test. Every few minutes, the tester added 25w or so. I think you're right. I hit 275w for sure, and think I made it to 300w, but only lasted half a second or so at that rate.

I'll certainly follow your advice as well as Scott's about training. While I hope to cat up, I'll keep training pretty sensibly. 10hrs a week is about all I can fit into the schedule anyway.

Thanks guys

 

[aslanspaws]

Alright,

I've done just a few tests on my cycleops fluid2 and used the powercurve to estimate wattage:

All of this is helped due to my new weight of 70kg

FT: appears to be around 3.1w/kg though it's a bit tough to nail down
5min: 3.71w/kg
1min: 6.53w/kg
5sec: I can do a 5sec sprint on the Fluid2 @ 33.5mph. Based on some crappy math, I'm guessing that gets me around 1100watts (15.63w/kg)

In recent training and racing I've had these experiences

In sprint riding (30miles of town sign sprints with slow recovery paced riding in between) I've been able to keep up with Cat 4s & 3s in the sprints (unless they are significantly uphill).

In crit racing - I rarely make it to the sprint with the pack. I feel that this is due in part to poor bike handling skills. I lose position early because I don't take corners as fast as I should. I've lost my nerve a bit due to recent crashes. However, I also tend to lose position in accelerations over a hill.

Road races - so far I've been taken out by crashes in my races before the end of the race. I've felt very good though, even on climbing stages.

TTs - this really seems like a limiter to me. I feel as if I'm racing very well (in that I'm racing at the highest level I can - nothing left over at the end of the race) and have a decent aero position. However, I'm getting results typically in the lower half of my category.

With this information at hand, I feel that my weakness is definitely the amount of power at FTP & LT and the 1min power. I can't explain why the 5min power would be higher, but the trainer and the results seem to point to this being accurate. I can absolutely hold my own on a 5min climb. I lose too much on a 1min climb or accelaration, but I can sprint with the fastest folks I can train with.

That might help to fill in some of the information gaps you were referring to Bullgod

 

[BullGod]

Alright,


That might help to fill in some of the information gaps you were referring to Bullgod

you identify all your strengths and weaknesses yourself. Like most newcomers you have a strong sprint, but the longer the testing period, the lower your standard is. That's normal. Years of training will raise the bar. How old are you by the way?

your 5 min power vs FTP is about normal. Your FTP is 83% of your 5 minute average. Mine is similar (4.8 w/kg vs 5.7 w/kg).

I also have a weak 1 minute power output, but I also have a very weak sprint. I cannot get above 1000w. I do NOT sprint - full stop.

I have had a lot of improvements training AWC (Anaerobic work capacity) by following Timan's AWC workout. do 2 or 3 sets of 6 x 1 minute flat out, with 1 minute recovery spinning after. give yourself 20 minutes easy between each set.

I think you should also at leats once a week do 2 or 3 x 20 minutes at 95% of your FTP.....keep doing them til your previous value seems easier - and then raise the bar - if you're rested and motivated aim for a personal best - anything to keep it interesting and motivating.....set yourself a realistic yet tough challenge - eg to get to 280w by the end of the year maybe.

as far as criteriums go - they are hard - as well as fitness they yest your handling skills, and some riders just don't have that level. you can only get better through practicing and I hate to say it, but by getting dropped and crashing a lot. Eventually it clicks. One thing that has made a big difference for me is working on cadence - you need to be comfortable at a high cadence to accelorate out of the corners. I don't care what people say about cadence vs power output - if you accelerate from 25 - 45 km/h out of a bend in 52 x 17 it saves you a lot of energy (and stops you losing places) compared to trying the same on 52 x 14......i mean , imagine goind round a tight bend in your car in 4th gear - you stall.

 

[aslanspaws]

right on
I'm 24 years old
the interval workouts (AWC & 2x20 or 3X20) you suggest sound great
I appreciate all the help BullGod


--Rem

 

[BullGod]

right on
I'm 24 years old
the interval workouts (AWC & 2x20 or 3X20) you suggest sound great
I appreciate all the help BullGod


--Rem

fwiw I started seriously when I was 24, and I am now (just about) hanging on in cat 1 Europe.....

take care not to overdo the intervals - once a week do the 5 minute sessions, but if you can't sustain them reduce the quantity - it's getting in the right zone that matters, not necessarily killing yourself.

the Timan AWC workout is really tough.....3 sets of that is 18 minutes in Level 6 in a 90 minute workout.....you'll feel the burn for the next 2/3 days.

only do that once in a while.....I have done that 3 times in one month, but I think that will be it for a while b4 I do it again.....going to hit some 30-40 second ones now. Believe it or not AWC is not so important in road racing - VO2 max, FT and sprinting is more important.....I have just been doing those one minute pain sessions because I am weak in AWC. with sprinting unless you're a specialist sprinter it's more about training your repeatibility (to simulate crits, jumps and surges) than hammering 1200 watts once or twice. Try 10 seconds at 650, 50 secondds easy repeat until you're toast for example....

always do at least one recovery ride a week.....this is so slow you can hold your breath for 30 seconds whilst riding.....and always take one rest day a week. where you do NOTHING. That's my advice. Some guys here train too hard, too often.