|
Nov 2023
11:22am, 14 Nov 2023
3,057 posts
|
Big_G
WW, as a matter of interest, are you happy that your FTP and other settings in the game are fairly accurate? If not that could have an impact, because the workout zones are based on the recorded FTP. I think we’re probably all different and probably there’s no right or wrong, but as a comparison in the last 8min block, my cadence was around 95.
In the last block, with ERG off, I did have to switch to an easier gear, as otherwise I’d have been grinding away at a low cadence and I wouldn’t have finished the session (the onscreen prompts did suggest to change gear in this section). Throughout the rest of the workout of course I didn’t change gear, but in this last 8-min section, you could have changed gear if that would have been better.
|
|
Nov 2023
11:36am, 14 Nov 2023
2,482 posts
|
MudMeanderer
What trainer are you using, WW? It may be that it's taking a short while for the erg to change resistance whilst moving between steps.
If you try to instantly hit the desired power increase, the only way to do that is through a faster cadence. If you give it a couple of seconds, it should hopefully have the resistance catch up to the desired value.
It can be an issue when doing really short efforts.
|
|
Nov 2023
12:14pm, 14 Nov 2023
6,101 posts
|
Windsor Wool
thanks chaps - I've actually just bought one of those new fangled Zwift Hub One trainers where the gearing is all virtual and there is only a single cog at the rear. Previously I was riding with a wheel-on TacX set-up and was always faffing with contact pressure and the tyre pressure as I'd often suffer from slipping.
I did an FTP test just a couple of weeks ago so I think I'm pretty set there and I was up and down the gears a fair bit on the 'free ride' 8 min section. It's more the ERG-led sections where I have a problem.
From your advice I do wonder whether I've simply created my own issue here. I tended to ramp-up the cadence going in to the harder sections with a view to hitting the W target straight off. I'll give it a bit of time to catch up next time while trying to avoid a death spiral. I'm pissed off about not being able to run but I don't want to die!!
Cheers, will report back next week!
|
|
Nov 2023
12:41pm, 14 Nov 2023
3,058 posts
|
Big_G
WW, just before you posted, I was watching DC Rainmaker’s review on that trainer with the virtual gearing. Looks good.
|
|
Nov 2023
1:13pm, 14 Nov 2023
6,102 posts
|
Windsor Wool
I’m quite impressed with it G. It took me a little while to get it set up, certainly longer than DCR made out, but since then it’s been good. It’s not quite as quiet as I’d expected but the virtual gear change is great and I now have 24 ‘speeds’ which is a great improvement on my old set-up.
One big reason I got it was because one of my mates - a real cyclist - hates the fact that I can keep up with him uphill on Zwift. He has always maintained that it must be an issue with my wheel-on trainer set-up over-reading power output. Thankfully, I went up the Alpe the day after I got the new set-up. 5s faster than I had the week before on the old one 
|
|
Nov 2023
7:39pm, 16 Nov 2023
2,809 posts
|
Totriornottotri
I did ZA1 long today. Was quite good. Felt happy tired by the end.
|
|
Nov 2023
10:26am, 17 Nov 2023
26,792 posts
|
Angus Clydesdale
Can you do them retrospectively then?
[stupid question: obvs you can]
Question is where to find them?
|
|
Nov 2023
10:39am, 17 Nov 2023
2,810 posts
|
Totriornottotri
Check the banner blocks - you have to click sign up. Like where you find the tour of Watopia
|
|
Nov 2023
10:40am, 17 Nov 2023
20,866 posts
|
Chrisull
WW - Occasionally I find 110W very hard going (harder than it should be) almost feels like it's malfunctioning, I give the derailleur a tap with my shoe and that often seems to help :).
I did ZA2, the shorter one, I rarely have over an hour free, and also my knee is still recovering so pushing it over the hour is definitely a risk. I do think the first two ZA's have elements that are slightly a cop-out. On the first you have a 30 seconds free ride, followed by a 2 minute free ride and on the second one an 8 minute free ride. I thought the whole point was to prescribe the power/effort you should be at, and turning it off then makes it a case of go as hard as you can, or not.
So on the 30sec one I'm over 350W, but on the 2 minute one I'm under 250W. There's no way I can sustain 350W for 2 minutes. But is this kind of difference acceptable or too big? I'm looking to Zwift to tell me. It knows my FTP, it can gauge probably from that what I'm likely to be capable of. Past workouts have done that (Matty Hayman's garage preparation for Paris-Roubaix, was a monster that I couldn't finish). Also it shows that it's lacking that ultimate interactivity mid workout, to look at either the stats as I'm doing it and say you averaged 350W for 30 secs, so you should be able to do say 2 minutes at 280W.
With the 8 minute free ride it's even more of a lottery. I followed the instructions - start 7 or 8 out of 10 and we'll advise you when to pick up effort, but it never did. I kind of gauged it myself, at the end I felt like I probably could have pushed slightly harder, but riding 8 minutes I started conservatively at roughly my FTP level. I don't mind if workouts are tough to complete, but I can do free rides on my own at any time and the reason I don't is because they are kind of targetless.
|
|
Nov 2023
1:47pm, 17 Nov 2023
2,489 posts
|
MudMeanderer
Chrisull: It may be worth having a read on power profiling (this is a good start https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/power-profiling/). Different rider types will be stronger over different durations, and FTP is only one point on the curve. It's useful for gauging where to put long aerobic efforts, but doesn't tell a lot for short efforts (VO2max, anaerobic, neuromuscular). Some riders will be great over say 20mins, but relatively poor over 2mins, others great at 10s but poor at 5mins.
It sounds like the ZA session is trying to create such a profile for you, based on sustained maximal efforts at different durations. It's specifically not prescribing the values as that would defeat the point of the session.
|
