I believe in utilizing sports science testing in establishing proper training zones based on individual physiology. I truly believe that using training plans out of magazines and estimating training zones (heart rate/power/pace) based purely on field testing is not necessarily a waste of time but is absolutely a gamble. A blood lactate test with Coach Gareth at the TRIO Lab two weeks ago revealed OK results for this time of year. I’m a few months outside of peak fitness so it was somewhat expected that my Steady State Threshold would be slightly lower than during peak race season. It was down about 10 watts from last season’s peak but I have been doing some serious base mileage and I really thought that I would test a bit better. Coach Gareth has always been somewhat suspect of my fairly aggressive time-trial position on the tri-bike and suggested that we retest this week on my road bike to check if I was losing power in the TT/aero-position.

I retested today, 2 weeks after the initial test and the jury of sports science returned a clear verdict; significant power lost in my current TT/aero-position. Today’s test on my road bike showed a gain of 15 watts at Steady State Threshold and I put out my highest peak wattage since I started testing 15 months ago. Blood lactate levels were up to 50% lower at given power outputs and heart rate was much lower as well indicating that I did indeed have pretty solid base conditioning. In fact, this was my strongest bike test ever; but has left me with a serious issue of fixing my TT/aero-position without breaking the bank and without losing too much in aerodynamics.

At the end of the day power on the bike trumps everything. Magazines and websites love to sell you expensive aerodynamic gear. However, the reality is, it’s all a waste if you’re sacrificing big watts to get more aero. The objective now is to set up my tri bike to essentially mirror my road bike position from foot to knee to hip to shoulder…and then reestablish the aero position from there. I’m probably too low in the cockpit and a bit far forward on my tri-bike. The shorter cranks on my tri-bike might be holding me back a bit too, although only time and more experimenting will tell. At the very least, I know that I’m capable of pushing those bigger watts, and I have the numbers to compare.

The lesson here is to make sure that your TT/aero-position is efficient and get into the lab to get tested if you want to find out if you are losing watts due to position. The most expensive TT bike in the world will likely not give you as much speed as a 20% increase in pure wattage. It hurts a lot and takes a lot of time to build sustainable power on the bike, but it is truly the gold standard for measuring improved bike fitness. Keep in mind that the aerodynamic equipment being marketed to triathletes is overblown and definitely produces massive profits for the companies that sell the equipment. Don’t get me wrong, a good set of wheels and a nerdy aero-helmet that makes you look like an odd shaped penis can make a big difference. That said, I've put in some time working in this industry and know for a fact that there are a lot of triathletes that would much rather buy fancy gear than sweat it out on the trainer doing their intervals. This is all just food for thought, but might point you towards a power-based bike-fit rather than a second set of aero-wheels.

Train smart, have fun and remember to always race against the grain!

This post was written by ANTI-Mike