Using Power Cycling Training Zones Correctly
An 'effort' is a very vague term, it means different things to different racers, so for this article, an effort is when you have to dig deep, and really push yourself hard.
There are different types of efforts as well, a sprint is different from a 5 mile climb, and a 5 mile climb is different from a 10 mile time trial.
Each racer also has a limited amount of efforts they can complete. For example, if you had to do a 100 lap criterium, and there was a sprint every lap, I doubt anyone would be able to do 100 sprints!
Choosing the right moments to put in a big effort is crucial to winning a race.
Using power cycling training zones, you can pace yourself correctly during a hard effort, and avoid burning yourself out.
To use these power cycling training zones correctly, you must know what your functional threshold power is. I have described how to do this in my hub (link at bottom of page).
For this article, I will use 250 watts as an example of someone's functional threshold power.
The first power cycling training zone is the 1 minute effort. You would use this zone for a short sprint, either on the flat, or up hill. The effort should be 20% above your FTP, or above 300 watts.
The second zone is the 5 minute effort. This zone could be used for a moderate climb, or a break close to the finish line. The effort should be 15% - 20% above your FTP, or 287 - 300 watts.
The third zone is the 10 minute effort. This could be used for a longer climb, or during a breakaway. This effort should be done at 8% - 12% above FTP, or 270 - 280 watts.
The final power cycling training zone is the 20 minute effort. This would be close to your time trial pace, but can also be used for a big climb, or a breakaway which is quite far from the finish line. This effort should be done at your FTP, up to 8% above it, or 250 - 270 watts.
Knowing your FTP and power cycling training zones is crucial to pace yourself correctly during a race.
Those power cycling training zones can also be used for interval training sessions as well.
There are different types of efforts as well, a sprint is different from a 5 mile climb, and a 5 mile climb is different from a 10 mile time trial.
Each racer also has a limited amount of efforts they can complete. For example, if you had to do a 100 lap criterium, and there was a sprint every lap, I doubt anyone would be able to do 100 sprints!
Choosing the right moments to put in a big effort is crucial to winning a race.
Using power cycling training zones, you can pace yourself correctly during a hard effort, and avoid burning yourself out.
To use these power cycling training zones correctly, you must know what your functional threshold power is. I have described how to do this in my hub (link at bottom of page).
For this article, I will use 250 watts as an example of someone's functional threshold power.
The first power cycling training zone is the 1 minute effort. You would use this zone for a short sprint, either on the flat, or up hill. The effort should be 20% above your FTP, or above 300 watts.
The second zone is the 5 minute effort. This zone could be used for a moderate climb, or a break close to the finish line. The effort should be 15% - 20% above your FTP, or 287 - 300 watts.
The third zone is the 10 minute effort. This could be used for a longer climb, or during a breakaway. This effort should be done at 8% - 12% above FTP, or 270 - 280 watts.
The final power cycling training zone is the 20 minute effort. This would be close to your time trial pace, but can also be used for a big climb, or a breakaway which is quite far from the finish line. This effort should be done at your FTP, up to 8% above it, or 250 - 270 watts.
Knowing your FTP and power cycling training zones is crucial to pace yourself correctly during a race.
Those power cycling training zones can also be used for interval training sessions as well.
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