V-CLUB TRAINING CORNER
We’ve teamed up with Marilyn Trout, certified USA Cycling Elite Coach to answer V-Club members’ training questions. You can view her coach profile at: http://www.trainingpeaks.com/coachdirectory/searchbydiscipline.asp#MarilynTrout
Send your cycling inquiries to Marilyn, and for a limited time, if yours is selected to be answered in our V-Club column, VeloWear will send you a $20 gift certificate that can be used towards any purchase on VeloWear.com. To submit your inquiry, e-mail her at trout_mic@msn.com, and type “V-Club Training Question” in the subject line of the e-mail.
V-Club member Kyle Bohling is our 23rd winner of a $20 VeloWear gift certificate! His training question follows...
Optimal Cadence May Vary with Terrain
Marilyn,
Drove up into the hills and did a 42 mi loop with 3 long sustain climbs and some rolling terrain in between. Legs felt really heavy on the first climb but then loosened up and felt really good until the last long climb, then legs felt ok but were tired and lacked some power. I wanted to keep rpms up on climbs but I seem to drop the cadence when climbing. On the flats I keep rpms around 90 but on climbs rpms drop to low 80's even into the 70's. Does this mean I am overgeared or is this just a factor of climbing. My power seemed ok with 270-300 watts pretty consistent on the climbs.
Kyle B.
Kyle,
Certainly the possibility of being overgeared on a climb can be a tendency with some riders but I don’t think this is the case here looking at some cadence figures from past climbing work you’ve done. Overgearing would produce some power numbers well above your threshold with some below average rpms for you personally. “On the flats I keep rpms around 90 rpms but on climbs rpms drop to low 80's even into the 70's.” Indeed there is a difference between the flats and climbing which will be reflected in what you feel a comfortable cadence range is. During a mountainous road race, you climbed at about an average of 75-84 rpm @ 300w over a 10-20' period whereas in the TT your cadence was higher, 90’s, but still at your threshold power.
Here's some of your climbing thoughts about the brutal Dead Dog Pro 1,2 Road Race. I add this simply to encourage you to be conservative in your power output leading up to the climb whenever possible so you have the legs when the hammer goes down. It also serves as a reminder that so much of climbing is mental.
“I started off good with the first 20 miles relatively flat and easy. Made it over the first steep short hard climb. Once we hit the long climb I had no power in my legs and could not keep my watts above 250 and it only got worse as the race went on. I had planned on trying to keep my watts at 300-350 on the climb but I just could not do it. I’m sure some of it was physical and a lot of it mental.”
Knowing what kind of wattages you have been pumping out in the races and training thus far this year, you can be a good judge of the level of intensity you can put out without "burning a match." Going with the "tried and proven" removes doubt, helps prevent the tendency of going out too hard and riding "over the aerobic cliff" and allows you to ride more confidently.
SHARE YOUR TRAINING TIP!
IF WE PICK IT YOU WIN A FREE PAIR OF SHORTS.
Send your tip along with your name, history of your cycling experience and any other relevant information to velowear@velowear.com. Articles will be reviewed by members of the VOLER staff and may be featured in upcoming e-mails and on the VOLER web site.