Strength Plan

I retested my CP5s and CP1 tests this morning. I tightened the roller on the trainer by one more turn than normal, which helped prevent wheel slippage.

My new 1 minute power-to-weight ratio is 7.08W/kg (rated Fair/Moderate), and my new 5s power-to-weight ratio is 10.o2W/kg (still Untrained per the chart). While these are better than my earlier numbers, they're still not where I'd like them to be.

In the CP1 test today, I was probably limited more by Anaerobic Endurance than Force (essentially, I could turn the gear over, just not for long enough). For the CP5s test, even though I used different gearing this time, I still felt like I just couldn't turn over a big enough gear to get a better power number.

I've been thinking that part of the problem is the haphazard way I've approached my Strength training. I haven't been using the plan in Friel's book (hey, I have the Internet, I know better, right?); I don't think that's necessarily a problem, but I've replaced his plan with a very unstructured plan of my own. As I see it, there are two problems with my "plan". One is that it's fairly random in terms of exercise selection, so I'm not necessarily focusing on the right things (or anything!). That may be OK for the off-season, but it's not now. The second problem, which is probably more important, is that I haven't been diligent about progression. Essentially, I don't have any strength training goals and I'm not increasing loads on a schedule, so my results are limited.

So, to fix this, I'm planning to do two things: First, follow a real strength plan, whether it's Friel's or someone else's. I need to set some goals for what I want to achieve and follow a plan to get there. Second, I need to make sure my nutrition will support my training; it seems basic, but it's easy for me to let it slide.