New Poster!

Hello fellow Power Crankers! This is my first post on this blog and I thought I would share my background with using Power Cranks.

I was first introduced to Power Cranks via a professional cycling friend. I was retiring from cycling, took on a 'grown-up' job, and started into triathlon. Without a running background Power Cranks really assisted me with making a 'transition' to the triathlon world especially in regards to my running. I could keep run volume low to start and supplement with Power Cranks. To my surprise I was improving tremendously on the bike as well, especially sustained climbs which were never my specialty especially living in Minnesota.

One key element that I find Power Cranks to be extremely useful for, but is rarely discusses, is bike fit. So often I see people with extremely high saddle height especially in the triathlon world. The extension/ plantar flexion of the lower leg coupled with rocking hips leads to calve cramping and low back pain. I've used Power Cranks to demonstrate that you can't even pedal with independent legs in such a position. I've also had success dialing in cleat position with the Power Cranks. Just another use for this great tool.

Perhaps my biggest story is in regards to a brutal accident and recovery. In April of 2008 I was in great shape coming into the season. My main goal for the year was the Hawaii Ironman which I had qualified for at Ironman Wisconsin the previous September. I was commuting home from work on my motorcycle when a car swerved over 4 lanes of empty freeway (it was late evening) and took me out. The impact was on my left side and I shattered my tib/fib and pelvis. 5 surgeries and 10 weeks of training after getting off crutches almost exclusively on Power Cranks allowed me to finish the Hawaii Ironman. I continued religious use and baffled my doc in regards to the expedited rehab especially in regards to bilateral strength. In 2009 I came back strong winning a few local races and setting a course record on 1 occasion in which I averaged 28mph for an olympic distance, more than 2.5mph faster than the next fastest on the bike segment. I also had the fastest run time - I hate run training and only run 25 miles per week.

This past year my wife and I had our first child, a boy named Kai. My focus has been on him and 90% of my limited training has been on Power Cranks. Although I'm certainly not as fit as last year I am able to stay in relative shape with limited time. I plan to make another go next year with the main goal of getting back to Hawaii to actually race versus simply finishing.

My experience with Power Cranks has thus served many purposes: performance (both bike and run), rehabilitation, bike fit, and time crunched training. There are obviously many more uses out there and I'm excited to check this blog frequently to get more ideas.

Happy training!

Jeremy

5th in NS Provincials

Last weekend I finished 5/12 in our 40km Prov ITT (B Ability Cat). Only 55sec separated me from the leader but it was my lower power:wt ratio that held me back on the two hill portions. The 7wk Chris Carmichael TT Program I followed had the desired effect as my Aug 17th lab test indicated I was pushing more wattage at threshold. Lab test - completed 3 min at 354 watts/85rpm. I did miss a couple of TT sessions due to the really high humidity in weeks 3 and 5, so only completed 80% of the program. I am happy with my placing. The P4 is a great bike!

My power to weight ratio for the lab test was 4.2 (354 watts at 84.3 kg for 3 min duration). In 4 months time I start riding with the Senior 2/3 riders in Halifax so my goal is to drop 10kg to get my p:wt over 5. I recently saw a chart displaying the average pwr:wt ratio for all cats with Senior 2/3 being 4.5 for 20 min duration. I am going to change my lab test procedure so instead of trying to continually hit a higher number I will hold 396 watts for as long as I can. I figure, as no race next season will have a climb of more than 15 min duration, at race pace a 15 min duration at 396 watts at 75kg computes to a 5.3 pwr:wt ratio. Now I only have to get to 75kg.

I have 5 rides planned per week til then including a 20K TT session, 2 hr climb workout, 2 hr race simulation, and a Sunday 120+ km EM ride. Except for the race sim w/o all sessions will be completed with PowerCranks and PowerTap unit. 2000 cals/per day and additional calories burned in the spinning classes and run workouts I complete a few times per week should do it.

I'll let you know how I did in Dec.

Hope everyone had a great summer.

TT WORKOUT 4/12

Without a doubt a really bad workout. Warm-up 20 minutes with four 45 sec LT intervals to prep my system for the 7.5 km distances to come. Exact same conditions/start time as last Sat but just didn't have it today. I think I started out too hard as well.

Honestly, the PC's felt like they weighed 10lb s each. If I didn't stop pedaling on the downhills I would never have recovered as much as I did for the next roller.

Interval #1 - 6km only/9:46 min/36.41 avg (down 4km/hr)/77 rpm (down 8)/264 Avg Watts (down 50+wts avg since Tue)

Interval #2 - Completed first 2km with a 50.1 km/hr avg (strong tailwind) and was DONE. I'm not an extreme humidity/hot temp rider so the effort felt much harder than it really was I'm sure. The cranks felt like they weighed a ton on the second interval. So, I did 5 more really hard 1 min on 1 min off intervals on distance remaining and called it a day.

Next week are Tue/Fri 2x10km w/10min rest with Powercranks. For the remainder of the TT schedule Wk 4 10k/Wk 5 20k/Wk 6 25k with 5 min recovery between efforts I'm going to switch over to my regular cranks.

TT WORKOUT 3/12

Tue, July 13th at 6:00 p.m.

Conditions: 25C feels like 35C/Sunny/15km steady headwind on 1st effort/Rolling course - Bishopville/Was extremely humid.

I was a bit off on distance because I didn't reset my PowerTap computer with each effort but choose the interval function instead. Distance was suppose to be 2x7.5km w/10 min recovery between efforts. 167.5mm crank length.

Effort 1 - 11:17/7.66 km /40.62 km/hr/avg / 85 avg rpm / 315 avg watt
Effort 2 - 10:48/6.9 km / 38.2 km/hr/avg / 85 avg rpm / 298 avg watt

Effort 1 perceived level of exertion was very high (18-19/20 BORG SCALE) so I wasn't surprised that the averages were lower on the second interval even with the tailwind.

Next entry on Fri or Sat. Three hour ride planned for tonite.

TT WORKOUT 2/12

I did two 2.5 hr days back to back on Wed/Thur so when it came time to do my TT workout Fri nite my legs were already feeling kinda fatigued. (I guess I went harder Thur than I thought I did.) So, I moved my 2x5km TT session to this morning.

Results:

Conditions: 25C Feels like 35C/Overcast/25km steady headwind on first effort/Start time: 9:15 a.m./Course: Rolling course

Effort 1 - 5km - 41.08km/hr / Avg Watts - 334 / Time 7:14 / Avg Cadence: 84
Effort 2 - 5km - 39.46km/hr / Avg Watts - 313 / Time 7:34 / Avg Cadence: 86

Eventhough there was a tailwind with the second effort I was slower. Felt a higher than normal level of fatigue + the humidity is at 83%. Speed on one hill, at 2km mark, I dropped below 30km/hr. Wasn't happy about that.

Haven't spent any time standing on the PC's yet but, being a former bodybuilder, when I climb out of the saddle I feel like I'm standing a 4x8 sheet of plywood up into the wind. (probably not that bad but I am a lot wider than most cyclists thru the shoulders and with much larger lats)

I may have to stand on race day and if it turns out that I am faster with the PC's than without, I will have to perfect my standing effort in the next 6 weeks.

Next results on Tue.

Back on the CRANKS

I haven't been using my power cranks for the last couple months since race season began. My lab testing though indicated a huge improvement in VO2 max from April to June test. VO2 increased from 58 to 67. Last nite I started my TT specific training for the Nova Scotia Provincials on Aug 22. I am using the power cranks in each session and a Chris Carmichael TT program from his first training book.

Tue/Fri workouts

Wk 1 - 2x5km w/10min recovery between efforts
Wk 2 - 2x7.5km w/10 min recovery
Wk 3 - 2x10km w/10 min recovery
Wk 4 - 2x10km w/5 min recovery
Wk 5 - 2x15km w/5 min recovery
Wk 6 - 2x20km w/5 min recovery
Wk 7 - Tue - 1x7.5 / Sun - Prov ITT

I will be substituting my final lab test for the Wk 7 Training session.

The first session went excellent. As I mentioned I haven't been using the cranks for about 10 weeks I guess but they felt really great. I shortened the length to 167.5 after reading some of the latest info on the PC website. I am currently 176lbs, using a Cervelo P4 with Easton Aero wheels equipped with a SLC+ Powertap unit. I was given a 3hr bike fit with the purchase and am not set-up in a overly aggressive position as my hams are tight and need some flexibility training.

First session data

Conditions: 22 degrees / overcast / no wind / 6:15 p.m. start / A-B rolling course - Bishopville

5km #1 - Avg Speed - 41.8km/hr / Avg Watts - 343 / Time: 7:08
5km #2 - Avg Speed - 40.8km/hr / Avg Watts - 334 / Time: 7:23 (a bit more uphill on return)

I would have easily broken 7:00 min on the first attempt but couldn't get into my 11 cog. I think its a limit screw issue.

I will continue to update twice a week for the duration of the program, shorten the cranks next Tue as well for the same course, and finish up with posting my final lab results on Aug 17th.

I am using the 40k Prov ITT course for my Fri session. By Wk 6 I will be completing the entire out and back with a 5 min recovery in between 20km efforts.

Keep the rubber side down

Alan

My Powercrank experience so far...

After my 2 spinal fusion operations of my L5-S1 vertebrae I was seriously lacking core stability, an overcompensated right leg and a very weak and skinny left leg, and not much glute or hip strength! I started using Powercranks mainly to rehabilitate myself before doing any serious training.

In November and December I had a bit of difficulty getting used to Powercranks. This took a bit longer than usual but it was to be expected after the work I had to do initially to rebuild myself post surgery. I was doing 20-30 minute rides on the rollers to start off with. It was hard (to say the least!) trying to keep both legs pedalling for long periods of time so I had to use a range of different techniques to complete longer rides. These included pedalling with one leg for a few rpm’s, then the other for the same amount of rpm (in and out of the saddle). To help with my core that little bit extra I would do some 2 minute drills in a big ish gear (53×13-16) with both pedals going around at the same time. Towards the end of December I was able to do 50-60 minute rides on the rollers.

Going into January I was able to get out on the road to do some rides. These started off at 30 minutes partly due to the weather, but increased to 2 hours by mid March. This period was mainly the same as my roller riding, basically just getting used to riding, ensuring the muscle balance, and mostly getting used to riding outdoors. It was a major step up riding up hills, riding into headwinds from riding indoors. By March I was fairly confident in myself that I had recreated the balance in my legs muscles and also built up my core strength and hip flexors to enable me to do longer rides and more specific efforts.

Going into the later part of March I was able to do rides consistent of 1hr45 to 2hrs30. Many of these included doing sprint drills, one leg drills, hill efforts and tempo drills.

Along the way I learned more about Powercranks other benefits that I would not have expected beforehand. I have no doubt that my strength has increased from using the Powercranks. My pedalling overall is very efficient, especially on climbs where I now also have the combination of efficiency and strength that I did not have before. This was a good base for getting back into racing and longer training rides.

My first 2 races back were 50km handicap races. The first race was to test the waters after not racing for 2 and a half years. I have no idea where I finished but it was very near last. In the second race I was able to do turns on the front and be there in the final for a 5th place after leading the sprint out. A few days after that I did my first big road race which was the Welsh Road race champs. It was 130km completed in 3 hours, and I ended up finishing 9th! I was just hoping to finish… It was a lot easier for me to complete the harder and longer rides after coming off Powercranks; my legs were much stronger to be able to cope with the stresses of racing, and my breathing and heart rate was lower than it previously was. I have also noticed a huge improvement in my walking.

The most significant improvement is hip flexors and my left hamstring muscles which were previously non-existent on my left side. The one thing that did surprise me was my flexibility. Using the Powercranks combined with my home stretching and core stability routine, Powercranks have helped my flexibility to no end, which I did not expect. For someone who has had 2 spinal fusion operations, I should not be able to fit my head between my knees whilst being able to plant my hands flat on the floor! Once I have completed my racing season in 2010 I will be using my Powercranks to start off my winter training, and to do harder efforts and rides until the racing season starts in 2011.

I recommend Powercranks to anyone. Whether it be for rehabilitation purposes or for improving your cycling, running or walking. They are by far the best piece of cycling equipment I have ever purchased!