I am beginning my second year of triathlon and want to know if the purchase of a powertap is justified this early in my career.
My quick history:
I have been doing endurance sports (mostly running) for 4 years (3 marathons two tri’s)
I started triathlon two years ago but had to take last year off from endurance sports.
I live in MN
I have been biking since April this year, about 100miles per week but working towards 150 now that the days are longer
I have 3 daughters so time is limited to early morning training, hence any mileage needs to be quality.
I have a stock 2005 Cervelo Dual
So, would this expensive gadget be beneficial or would I be better off just building up my mileage for another year or two before considering powermeter training? I use a hr for running and biking now. Thanks for your insights!
It may, but only if you use it carefully. I have one, not because it makes me faster, but I like the gadget. Good training will get you pretty darn far w/o one.
I’m no expert, but I look at it like this: When someone begins endurance sports, they can do nearly anything to improve - three days/week of random training will do fine. Then, as they gain experience (and fitness), the sophistication of their training inreases. They start periodization, plan their weeks, even get a coach. These are all tools to gain sophistication. As an athlete grows toward an expert, they need to get very sophisticated. That’s when they start hiring the top coaches, going to the wind tunnel, and yes, buying a power meter.
Well, it doesn’t sound like you’re at the expert level yet. So, having or not having a power meter isn’t your limiting factor as an athlete. could you improve by just riding your bike more? sure. Could you improve by buying a power meter? Probably. Do you need one to just to improve your fitness? No (see answer to the just ride more question).
So, if you see it like I’ve written it, the power meter won’t hurt. Get it if you want it, invest your money elsewhere if you don’t. Or, you could send me the money you’d spend on the PT, and I’ll write you an email each morning telling you to get your ass out of bed and onto the bike ;).