New to sufferfest, new structered traing - revolver

Training
#1

Got my stages sb20 mid december so now have been training a little over 2 weeks. prior to this i’ve got about 25 years of fairly regular outdoor riding but nothing organized. so i took the hm last week and got an ftp of 140. followed the guide lines but certainly felt like i could push a bit harder. so another couple of weeks i’ll do the hm again now that understand the process better.

just finished doing revolver for the second time. during the intervals revolver wanted me to do 175 watts at 100 rpm. holding at 175 watts, i’m around 85 rpm. holding at 100 rpm, i’m doing 200+ watts.

my thinking is to match the rpm as long as i can do this for most all the intervals. It means to me that my ftp is probably higher than 140. this should maximize my training. does this make sense?

#2

Can you shift?

If you’re using erg mode, your cadence doesn’t matter for the output.
You should be doing these workouts based on the wattage targets instead of overshooting the wattage target to match the interval cadence.

We need more info to figure out why you can’t hold different wattage at a different cadence.

What equipment are you on?

#3

It does sound like you are not in ERG mode in Revolver, where the app will work with the trainer to control the power to the target, regardless of your cadence. There can be some floor and ceiling issues, but I don’t think that’s your issue here. Also, it looks like the Stages SB20 should allow you to simulate shifting gears, allowing you to change the power/cadence relationship.

It’s fair to expect that you’ll get a better result from your second HM test, as you’ll know more about how to do the test. You could also look at doing Full Frontal to get a more complete power profile. FF requires you to pace a series of intervals, so I’d recommend trying HM again as soon as you get a chance.

#4

You might also want to have a look at this thread to see if it helps you with your SB20: Stagesbike SB20

#5

Thanks for all the quick feedback. I should have provided more info. Yes, I can shift. I’m not in erg mode but level mode. My thinking is that my FTP is higher than the 145 I got from my first HM since I can hold a higher wattage than what the test requires at the recommended cadence. So I could possibly downshift to meet both the lower wattage and higher cadence but wouldn’t that be the easy way out. isn’t that immoral to do in sufferfest?

#6

Thinking about it more, I think it would be better to use the workout settings screen and adjust my 4DP metrics upward to take better advantage of sufferfest. my current training plan has me taking another HM in about a month, maybe i’ll move that up.

#7

This seems to be a particular challenge for “newbies”. My philosophy is to rely on the technology, both the app & the smart bike. So I ride most (except when instructed otherwise) in Erg mode. My 1st FF was also lower than I thought but I had riden 60km the day before & it was more of an interesting training session than a serious FF. So I’ve gone into settings, tweaked the numbers & manually & then see how I fare. Cobbler yesterday I went 100%, 95%,90% as I could see HR was climbing above FTP & the instructions told me to stay below.

So I think your latest approach is better than your 1st. Match power, try to match cadence, & use the up/down arrows if HR on the day is too light or too high…

In the notes you can capture % age of settings you achieved which will give you an indication of how much you can better your next FF test

#8

What do you mean by “HR climbing above FTP”?

These are two different metrics.

#9

Quite correct, in that they are different metrics.
What I mean is that if my HR climbs above a level which I could sustain for an hour then I need to throttle back on the power being generated. Probably getting FTP & LTHR intertwined.

Just checked verbiage again & it states. “ensure your effort remains at a workout rate that you know your body can handle”. My body’s handling ability is based on HR not power.

#10

I would do the workouts as prescribed for now. After a couple of weeks, you should do Half Monty or do FF again. I know which one I’d rather do… i.e. HM.

It makes little sense to me to be doing a structured training plan and then changing the targets based on your perception of metrics. You tested. They’re your numbers. Adjusting things manually because you feel like it doesn’t really make sense. If your numbers are higher you’ll find out the next time you test. If you feel like you had a bad test, then redo the FF or HM sooner. Better yet, do the FF lead up plan to hit it head on and fresh.