Critical Power Profile

This is the coolest training tool I've seen. It's a critical power predictor.

I think I discussed this in an earlier post. Critical Power(cp) is the average maximal watts that you can sustain for a given time period. For example, your critical power for 20 minutes is call cp20. There are cp's for several critical time increments, 5 sec., 1min., 3min., 20min., and 60min. I found a excel spreadsheet, written by Rick Moll, out on the internet. It uses some accepted calculations to predict 5 cp wattages based on testing two of those cp's.

I did a cp3 and a cp20 max test. The spreadsheet predicted the rest. Of course, if I actually tested all times, it would be more accurate. However, the predictive model allows me to see the general wattage range for various time intervals. Now, if I want to actually test my cp60, I could be smart about the test so that I don't go out too hard and blow up which is exactly what I did on the two I actually performed. I'm considering retesting this week to see if they are accurate.

Here's my data so far.
cp1 - 737 watts calculated
cp3 - 375 watts actual
cp5 - 303 watts calculated
cp20 - 221 watts actual
cp60 - 203 watts calculated

Now, I can formulate my training based on my needs. At this point in the season, I don't need to work on my sprint. I need based miles. I will set my training so that I can elevate my cp20 and cp60 wattages.

Next blog, I'm going to talk about how to put it into practice.