Becoming a GC rider, revisited

Hello All,

A few weeks ago there was a thread about the prospects for TT types (ie
heavy, non-climbers) to improve at climbing vs climbers abilities to
improve at TT'ing.

As Fate would have it, I have become my own labratory for just such an
experiment.

August 21 I was struck ill, and I was admitted to the hospital and
operated upon. Subsequent issues and minor complications meant I was
there for 13 days. I didn't eat during this period (and a few days
prior) so when I got home yesterday and weight myself I found that I
have lost about 31lbs. (14kg).

Obviously much of that was fat, but a fair amount was muscle too. (Does
anyone know what percent fat vs muscle one should expect to lose in
such a situation?) My "Natural" weight is much closer to the 225lbs
(103kg) that I was than to the 195lbs (89kg) that I am now.

At my given training level (hobby) my natural body size (lung size,
heart capacity, etc) meant I had a power output at LT of about 320W.
This gave a p/w ratio of 3.1. Assuming my power remains the same when
my recovery is complete, my new p/w ratio is 3.6. That's a 15%
improvement. That should make a very significant difference up hills,
and will also help a bit in my TT'ing.

So here is my theory:

I am "naturally" a 225lb person now in a 195lb body and I can produce
the power of a 225 pounder. A person who is "naturally" 195lbs will not
(with the same training level) be as likely to produce as many Watts as
I do, and I am thus at an advantage.

Of course at hobby levels, training amounts and effectivity make a
bigger difference that just about everything else, but what do people
think of my theory? Am I at an advantage over other 195lbs riders now?

Joseph

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Becoming a GC rider, revisited
    ... Obviously much of that was fat, but a fair amount was muscle too. ... At my given training level my natural body size (lung size, ... etc) meant I had a power output at LT of about 320W. ... That should make a very significant difference up hills, ...
    (rec.bicycles.racing)
  • Re: Really Dumb Question...
    ... If power is the ability to detect a significant difference given ... Is it because the rejection was based on the sample data ...
    (sci.stat.edu)
  • Really Dumb Question...
    ... If power is the ability to detect a significant difference given ... Is it because the rejection was based on the sample data ...
    (sci.stat.edu)