Studies have shown that little ring is less efficient. You are wasting watts pedaling in the little ring. It doesn’t matter as much if you are targeting cross. Same as I was during season. Whatever I got is what I worked with so that I knew I’d be ready with the same gearing.
This is amazing. [quote=“Levi_gaswint, post:146, topic:986”]
don’t worry about times or power numbers. you should be aiming for death.
[/quote]
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So if it is less efficient is it then better to train in the small ring?
As mentioned numerous times the training load is based on your test results. If one spends most of the time training on small ring, then the test should be also done in small ring. I would even go further and keep the rear cog the same.
Personally, big ring feels a lot like flat road riding and small one - climbing due to inertia effect. So if I want to get my legs somewhat tapered for the climbs, I train on small ring and possibly raise the front to simulate the climb position, otherwise big ring. Problem with big ring, at times, is that due to wheel speed, the trainer hits the power floor and can’t go lower. For example, I can’t go below 120w in big ring without crossing the chain too much on my trainer.
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Every Ramp test I’ve done so far, I’m able to go way beyond the previous test, long past Coach Chad’s comments. I found my Kickr has been way off in terms of accuracy, so even though I’ve just 1 1/2 wks to go in SSB LV1, I’m going to test with power match to my newly acquired Assioma pedals. I fully expect my FTP to go down, hopefully not too much.
The topic of accuracy is quite different than most of what was discussed here.
Differentials between 2 power data sources is a near inevitability in this realm. That is the reason behind the standard statement to retest anytime you change primary measurement devices.
It is also the reason they recommend using PowerMatch when you have a dedicated power meter than will also be used outside. Consistency of measurement for training is far more important than accuracy.
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Using the kickr prior to obtaining a power meter put my ftp at 308 watts. The power meter was registering up to 100 watts less for most of the ss workouts. I returned a pair of Vector 3 pedals thinking there was something wrong with them
My Assioma pedals showed the same thing leading me to suspect the kickr. Subsequently did a factory spin down which brought the kickr within 5 watts of the pedals. In the ramp tests I’ve done so far. I’ve gone to about 25 min
Currently travelling on business, plan a ramp test with an arbitrary ftp of 200 when I get home. I’ll report back afterward.
So I did a ramp test today. I had arbitrarily set my FTP at 200 watts, and the ramp test was based on that. I made it through 18 min, for an FTP of 182 watts. I would post the workout, but don’t know how to go about that. Far cry from the previous 308 watts, but not to surprising given my age and setbacks along the way
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You can share your workout by simply loading that page in the TR website, the copy the link from the address bar, and paste it here. That also requires you having your TR account set to ‘Public’ to allow us to see the full workout. Or, you can simply get a screen capture and share that way as well.
As to your 182w vs 308w, there would be a host of questions.
What time frame between them?
What have you done between them, for training, riding, racing?
Were there any equipment changes related to power measurement?
Were they both in similar conditions (inside/outside, heat, etc.)?
And maybe more.
To a degree, you have the fitness you have. The only thing to do is take that FTP, start training, and build it back up.
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@GPx yes if you are in ERG mode TR manages the resistance. It does not shift modes like the 8/20 minute tests.
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https://www.trainerroad.com/career/tfield/rides/52791149-ramp-test
Well, Here’s the whole back story. I’ve raced on and off since the 1970’s. Got serious in the early 2000’s, eventually getting an SRM power meter. On road FTP tests gave me an FTP around 220,230 at a weight of 71 kg. I raced up until 2010 when I developed some stress related medical problems. Sold my power meter, sold my TT bike, and mostly lifted weights and hiked in the Sierras. Retired this spring, and started riding again, painfully. A 20 min test on Zwift put my FTP at 170 watts in May. Rode over the summer, got knee tendonopathy from the Coeur d’Fondo. Took 2 months off the bike, and started Trainer road using a '17 Wahoo KIckr. My first ramp test gave me an FTP of 155. Did Traditional Base Low Volume. Next Ramp at the start of Traditional Base Low VolumeII gave an FTP of 277. Went to SSBLV1. Next Ramp test gave me FTP of 308. Hard to believe. I decided to get a power meter for the bike because I started travelling and working part time. I wanted to keep up with the TR plan. Needless to say I was pretty happy with 308… over 4 watts/kg. I bought some Garmin Vector3 pedals, and noted they weren’t measuring anywhere near what the KIckr was. Went back and forth with Garmin support and eventually returned the pedals. Bought some Favero Assioma pedals which showed pretty much what the Garmin pedals did. This lead me to assume the Kickr was off. After doing a factory spindown on the Kickr, its within 5 watts of the pedals. This means that all of my previous ramp tests have very inflated values for FTP. A more realistic hope is to get back over 3 watts/kg. I’m 64
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The Ramp test looks good and I think you put everything in to it (judging by the HR increase and cadence grind down).
Sadly, the poor power data you experienced is all too common from uncalibrated smart trainers. Even when done properly, some will vary from actual power meters.
Effectively, you have a new (and likely more accurate) measuring stick. So, I would suggest creating a new “Season” in the TR world at the time you got your current power meter. Disregard power data from earlier than that time. Instead, focus on your current training with the current power meter and work on the gains you have in front of you.
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Tried to search thru the responses, but what is everyone’s take on turning power smoothing off on a smart trainer during the ramp test. If turned off, did you find it made a difference in time to exhaustion?
For clarity and general info, the smoothing only affects the digital (numeric) display of the active power.
- It effectively reduces the jumping that occurs during the pedal stroke. The amount of jumping is highly dependent on the power device in use (some are smoother vs others are more jumpy) and the particular rider.
- It has no impact on the displayed graph or any of the data captured and available for review after the workout.
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I have actually found it to be a lot easier to pedal (less resistance) during training sessions but also easy to overshoot and undershoot power targets.
I agree, in rough numbers, coming back from injury in November, if I use a 60% correction factor, my ramp tests went from 93 to 166 to 182. So there’s progress. I shall soldier on.
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i guess the only way to find out is to give it a try and see what results i end up with with smooth off vs smooth on.
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My recommendation for resistance and erg mode in general, is to focus on CADENCE more than power.
- In resistance, you do need to pay attention to power when you jump steps. This is to find the right gear and cadence combo that is close to the target.
- But once you find that, I feel you can more accurately control the power by focusing holding that particular cadence value.
- That was my experience in general when using my Kinetic Road Machine. I am smoother with cadence focus vs watching power. Likely just a trick of the mind, but it works for me and could help others too.
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Spot on 
I was running a cadence of 100+ up until the 20 min mark and then dropped to 60 when I reached 21 and packed 
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I had a problem with my last ramp test where as I reached the final couple of steps, slightly increasing cadence, the power started gradually dropping. This was in ERG mode on a Tacx Vortex, big ring up front, 3rd closest to hub at the back. Assuming I’ve hit some kind of power ceiling, what’s the best way to avoid this again? Start in a lower tooth ring at the back? Shift up a gear part way? I didn’t have a problem with the test before this, but maybe I was just within the power ceiling that time. Very annoyed as it was a waste of a test!
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