I got what was coming to me by not reading the details of the workout. I picked on the title expecting a steady hour. Instead I ended up with some horrid ftp test type thing.
Wasn’t going to do the 8 min test, even up until 60 secs before the interval. But thought sod it why not. Even if I just get another 4 mins or so over ftp, it’ll be a good workout. Managed to get to the end. Don’t think I upped my ftp though! 
In fact I probably performed worse!
I don’t seem to be improving in 2021!
Sorry for the long post but this has got me thinking. Either i’m not cycling well, and a few more weeks of sessions and races and stuff will bring it up … or something is amiss. i don’t feel like i’m a huge amount behind where i was in Nov/Dec. Though i know i can’t feel power, and i can still be working just as hard, but putting out poorer numbers (in the region of a good 10%).
Here’s the spanner though. Hoping the TT groupthink can solve the mystery, as this is all still pretty new to me. Hopefully the theory runs in my favour. Equally it could compound my current situation, which just means time to get working!!!
As i’ve said over the last few weeks, on zwift i’m seeing power numbers a good 10% lower, but i’m working hard. Set up is one sided crank based PM on dumb turbo talking to ipad.
I’ve been out for one ride this year so far. Power figures gave me 2.5 hours (with about 30 mins of stoppage - 20 mins for a cuppa and few waiting for my mate to catch up on the hills) riding time for:
233w - 2.64 w/kg - 0.95 IF - 1.23 VI
That would suggest a pretty tasty ride. Reality was it was pretty much social pace on the flats and descents, but just got into my own rhythm to get up the bigger hills. Wasn’t burying myself, but wasn’t taking it easy. Just found my tempo.
On one hill i hit a 7 min power high of 307w NP. Again, i eased into the hill (didn’t attack) and just plugged at ‘my pace’. Strava gave me my 2nd best time up there (at the end of the ride) only 7 secs behind my top time last October. This was a couple of weeks ago.
In my session today i had 2 x 5 min intervals at 265w. They felt hard! I only managed 270w average for the 8 min session at the end and i obliterated myself in the last minute to keep the average i’d held to that point. I was properly panting and groaning in the shed!
So what’s happening? Clearly there’s a difference between indoor and outdoor. But this feels like a significant difference.
Did my PM just over read when i was outdoors and flatter me? But how does that explain my 2nd quickest time up a big local hill, without really going for it?
Is something not reading/calibrating properly indoors? But how can that happen? If i was on a different power reading device it would make sense. But i’m on same bike, just dumped on a dumb turbo.
Do i need to just stop worrying about it and crack on? Is this just my fragile little ego taking a hit?!
Vote now.
A hooling and rare easterly!
Haha - i can confirm there was nay a breath of wind
More seriously I’m sure it’s just a difference between indoors and outdoors and the different nature that gives, your difference 265 vs 300 for 7 minutes is really close compared to the difference of what I could do indoors vs Peak Hill (which is probably get off and walk at the corner, but still) some people can do more indoors, some can do more out, the way your body reacts to the different inertia in the pedals is what triggers it.
Peak hill is actually too steep at the corner for me, and the inertia can drop low enough that I then fail same as I do indoors, a less steep hill I can keep going. At Crocknorth here in the surrey hills it’s also over 12% and if I have the power to hit the bottom hard enough that I’ve still got speed I could keep it at well over 400w which kept the power up which meant I could be closer to 2 minutes for the hill, but if I lost the speed anywhere I would completely tail off. I need the higher inertia to keep putting out the watts.
I’d look at the cadence, whilst your cadence is obviously very low at the steep bit (you had no more gears I guess) otherwise it’s very up and down and stuff - on the turbo bet you had one and slowly tailed off into a spiral of death.
Thanks @JibberJim
The effort from today was pretty consistent to be honest
I’ll just ignore it and carry on and see if anything changes.
So it was consistent, but the effort was not - hence you managed to raise your effort to keep it there - although your cadence is really high on the turbo, almost spinng out high - can you increase the resistance?
Yes i’m just weak!
When things are getting tough i always tend to revert to spinning in the 90+ range.
Maybe that’s something to focus on. Thanks
Quick spin on Zwift, London Flat for 30mins, 216 av watts.
Remember unless you’re training to race on zwift you care about going fast outdoors, so you may not want to adjust your training to optimise for zwift.
Been outside. Not pretend outside, but outside outside. Roads, mud and everything. Have stuck a gold star on my calendar. 
I presume you have tried calibrating the PM, assuming you can?
I’m sure there’s peaks and troughs with fitness, although 10% is quite a bit, sometimes a few interval sessions can bring it back, or Zwift racing. You were doing a few races and I remember you doing a couple of the TTT’s?
A bit of running could also help, particularly leg work if you are on the hills for some strength sessions?
That’s the conundrum. I feel in OK shape, not out of shape. And the outdoors ride suggested I’m in ok shape.
No option to calibrate to zwift, but I do a calibration thing on the garmin before every ride outside.
Like @jibberjim says though. Zwift is just a means to an end. As long as my outdoor numbers improve, then I’m cool.
Mine fluctuates a bit, depends on how warm it is and whether I can cool off when I’m in the garage.
I have a couple of backup options to find out how I’m really feeling, one is our club 10, or a go on the course knowing what time I’m aiming for or a local hill climb, if I’m towards my PB I have a reasonable idea.
It’s a decent fallback if you have any kind of climb that’s not too savage but lasts about a mile or so.
Steady 5k run on the treadmill this morning.
That’ll burn off the 4 x bake well tarts I’ve had, right?
10 x 2 mins swim cords / 30 seconds recovery
85 minute Zwift
219W NP / 0.66 IF / 99HR
Absolutely.
If you do it again.
And then again 
12km with 5 x 1km at 10k pace.
Commute to work on CX bike. Still windy here.
Mr Kipling?
