That's a quote I've seen on a Slowtwitch in a signiture line. I brign it up because ultimately I'm a analytical geek. Not a extreme Type-A personality by any means, but I love to have data. To that end, today marks a milestone day. My Stages power meter is scheduled to arrive. I can't wait. The way they talk on Slowtwitch, you'd think the that the mysteries of the universe will be unlocked, the seas will part and I will step out of the darkness of heart rate bases cycling training and emerge and stronger, faster, cyclist. I do however beleive it will add more precision ot my training, allow me to pace better and give me repeatable data to compare wone workout against another day to day month to month etc. It also can allow me to see aerodynamic changes, though I'm not sure if the 1 leg measurement of the Stages is precise enough for that. It's likely to have probably 2-5 watts variation at times just due ot L/R variation.
The next new piece of equipment is minor, but still interesting. I purchased a Garmin foot pod. This will allow me to monitor and log my cadence during a run. SO far, at least in my Kinvara Trail shoes in heavy tights, I seem to prefer 174-176 strides per minute. When I do downhill and exceed 6:15 pace that goes up to 178-182. When I try to increase turnover, I mostly seem to just speed up, rather than shorten my stride. I think that's something which is easier to change on the treadmill where you pace is held constant.
On that note... thsi morning's run was possibly one of the best runs I've had ever. I cruised 10 miles in mostly zone 2 wit ha average HR of 147 but my average pace was 6:42! That included about 1.5 miles on less than ideal hardpacked snow covered roads with my foot slipping some. Not the most enjoyable, but in terms of pace, how I felt and the correspondinig HR, I was FLYING! I mean a huge step shift in pace compared to heart rate. I think it's probably a mix of several factors. 1) I've dropped 1/2-1lb in the last week. 2) My fitness is at a new peak with a CTL of 95 3) I run well even when my training load is high and I should be fatigued (TSB of -17), 3) Consistent mileage over 35mpw with most over 40mpw going back almost 4 months now. 4) A improvement in run economy, possibly due to using a treadmill that noisy and rattly, which encourages a smoother stride and footstrike. In particula, and heel strick seems to cause the belt to slip. I've also been using my Virattas more with zero offset and firmer cushioning. 5) Plyometrics, strides, hill repeats and weight training could be paying off with a stiffer leg on ground contact.
What was most noticeable was that my feet weren't sore at all (I've had soem sorness in my arch and top of my foot after soem runs). And overall my fatigue was fairly low. SO I just cruised 10 miles at a sub 7 pace just 1/2 way in zone 2, on a fairly hilly route, with some snow covered roads, with little fatige and with 16 miles already on my legs this week. Wow. I figure if i ran it at a 155HR (Open mararthon and 70.3 run pace) I'd be at a 6:20. That's a 2:45 marathon and a 1:22 split for my 70.3.
If I keep this up, I might be readjusting some of my goals. To think, I still have 4-5lbs to drop. In theory, that's another 0:10/mile right there. Now before I get too optimistic. I've also seen a slight drop in HR when my trainign load and fatigue goes up past a certain point. I think I've heard that mentioned. I need to probably monitor my resting HR when I first wake up to confirm. A increase in RHR, can show a shift in overall fatigue.
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