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8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value?
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HI All,
My first post, but I have been reading up for a while. Please forgive any duplication, but all comments appreciated.

I am fairly new to the sport having done a 70.3 last year and scheduled to do Muskoka in two weeks and Mt Tremblant in Aug. With a notable B-day around the corner, my missus is pushing me to get a PM since I like to us (in her words - "Gadgets").

I have read up and not sure whether it is wise to switch to PM now. I still have a number of big bike sessions ahead and also a very tight work/train/travel schedule in the last 4 weeks before the IM. Some of my pre-reading suggests that I could benefit from PM, even this late in the game.

Any views?
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [Nutter] [ In reply to ]
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Go for it. There's plenty of time to get up to speed in using it with training and then pace control during your races. Muskoka is hilly enough it will give you a good chance to at practicing self control on the inclines as well as a check on being geared low enough for IMMT

Hugh

Genetics load the gun, lifestyle pulls the trigger.
Last edited by: sciguy: Jun 27, 16 15:54
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [Nutter] [ In reply to ]
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If you're going to get one anyway, why not just get it. You won't be able to reap the benefits of it like someone who has been training and racing with it for a while, but it can definitely help. If I were in your shoes I would stick to my training schedule but try to tease out trends while training and afterwards, and if you're doing any kind of effort/HR based intervals then you can use it straight away by keeping whatever power you're putting out, as steady as possible. The numbers might not have a meaning or direct association with a intensity just yet, but keeping things constant is possible. You'll probably overcook some intervals, so then you know that the powermeter is doing its job ;) Maybe do an FTP test before your 70.3 B-race and use the results from that to race that b-race to see how that helps you, adjust if needed, and go from there.
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [Nutter] [ In reply to ]
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No time like the present to start using one. Your IM is not going to be your last triathlon ever I assume. So get the power meter and start to learn how to use it. Are you going to realize the full benefit within the next 8 weeks? No. Will you have time to learn how to use it and get some useful information from it? Definitely.
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [Nutter] [ In reply to ]
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Ditto the others. I am 6 weeks away from my second HIM, and I just got a PM. In my first HIM earlier this year, I rode to HR, and I wished I had power the whole way.
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [Nutter] [ In reply to ]
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If you plan on doing another IM, wait until after your race then buy one. Next year you will be able to see the difference a PM makes in your performance.
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [Sanuk] [ In reply to ]
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Until now all my training has been PE and HR based. Did my HIM and all long rides (and runs) on HR and effort.

Keen to see what power output will be, but don't want to confuse myself or derail training.

Should Have listened to the missus a few months ago and bought it, but may just bite the bullet...

Traveling to Europe this weekend, so may not even be able to get it before Muskoka.

Thanks for all the feedback. Keep it coming.

Will be back for more specific advice if/when I get it.
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [Nutter] [ In reply to ]
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Get it. I've had powermeters for 8 years now and have never regretted it. First only for training and bike-racing, but later also for tri's. In my opinion its during the long distance tri-events you REALLY benefit from a PM. IMO the biggest mistake to make in an IM bike-leg is (i) opening to hard, (ii)doing the inclines to hard and (iii) going to hard when passing. All these will be really obvious with a PM. Get a PM, never mind if you really dont implement it for training the last bit before your IM, but get a perception of your FTP and set a max wattage that you NEVER go over in the IM. This will fell ridiculously easy at first. Its meant to :) (which is why its very easy to open to hard without a PM.
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [lovegoat] [ In reply to ]
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Simply put

1) PM takes the guesswork out of RPE. Some days 80% is easy, some days it feels really hard. Metabolically, it's always the same. That also gives you a heads up if you need more recovery.
2) More consistent and responds dramatically faster than HR... within 1 second depending on display set-up. HR has 30-60 second latency to reach 90% of actual output, another 5-10 minutes to reach full equilibrium, and they it drifts higher from there depending on your fitness level. Actual metabolic output responds quicker. Probably within 5-10 seconds depending on how many zones you jump up or down.


TrainingBible Coaching
http://www.trainingbible.com
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [Nutter] [ In reply to ]
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Training with a PM is a very good step forward in accuracy, workload, etc..and is an invaluable asset over a long-term training plan. You have only 8 weeks however, and most of your training should be behind you ;-). In any event, I wouldn't recommend a new training style 2 months out.

What I use my PM more for now (after 10 years more or less) is racing and I think you absolutely can work up enough familiarity with a PM in 2 months to make it a valuable tool for race day. It is easy to fool yourself over the course of a 5,6,7 hour ride and misjudge your best effort level. With a PM that becomes tivial to simply watch your computer and make sure your effort is in-range.

Your best bet would be to go to a sports lab and have your FTP calculated. As part of that process, I find the post-testing consult to be the most valuable. I have them write on my chart exactly what my power zones are, and what an appropriate target power level is for races of varying lengths. If you don't have a lab nearby (or in budget) , there are a variety of self-testing protocols you can perform on a trainer. Getting a trustworthy FTP calculated is key to effectively racing with a power meter.

Longer tests tend to be better - a 30 minute FTP protocol will be more accurate than a "5 Minute FTP test!".. my coach actually had me sit on my trainer for a full hour! I think in hindsight he was testing my mental state more than my FTP.

" I take my gear out of my car and put my bike together. Tourists and locals are watching from sidewalk cafes. Non-racers. The emptiness of of their lives shocks me. "
(opening lines from Tim Krabbe's The Rider , 1978
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [Nutter] [ In reply to ]
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Nutter wrote:
Until now all my training has been PE and HR based. Did my HIM and all long rides (and runs) on HR and effort.

Keen to see what power output will be, but don't want to confuse myself or derail training.

Should Have listened to the missus a few months ago and bought it, but may just bite the bullet...

Traveling to Europe this weekend, so may not even be able to get it before Muskoka.

Thanks for all the feedback. Keep it coming.

Will be back for more specific advice if/when I get it.

You are very obviously new to triathlon and don't yet know the "Spouse Rule," which states that "if your spouse says you should buy [xyz gadget] you buy it immediately before he/she changes their mind."
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [Nutter] [ In reply to ]
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Yes/No.

Yes it will give you some good guidance in the final preparation.

No, you'll really not have enough time to ride with it, to fully maximize the potential of the PM, and your fitness. That takes at least several months of training under the direction and guidance of someone that REALLY knows PM training ( note - many coaches claim, they know this but few actually do!)


Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [ChrisM] [ In reply to ]
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^ that....that all day. Also hide the receipt so you "cant take it back"
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [ChrisM] [ In reply to ]
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ChrisM wrote:
Nutter wrote:
Until now all my training has been PE and HR based. Did my HIM and all long rides (and runs) on HR and effort.

Keen to see what power output will be, but don't want to confuse myself or derail training.

Should Have listened to the missus a few months ago and bought it, but may just bite the bullet...

Traveling to Europe this weekend, so may not even be able to get it before Muskoka.

Thanks for all the feedback. Keep it coming.

Will be back for more specific advice if/when I get it.


You are very obviously new to triathlon and don't yet know the "Spouse Rule," which states that "if your spouse says you should buy [xyz gadget] you buy it immediately before he/she changes their mind."

Seems the spouse rule in Triathlon is similar to the rules in Fishing!
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Re: 8 Weeks to IM - Will a PM add any value? [Nutter] [ In reply to ]
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Pretty much!
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