For a bit of background, I’ve been using Xert for a while and recently started using the Smart workouts now that I have an indoor turbo trainer. Previously I only cycled outdoors although this was with a powermeter.
I am also a regular runner and as my watch has a power meter, Xert also considers my running activities as part of my training load. So far so good.
I recently ran a 5 mile race and took several minutes off my target time. I don’t really know what happened but I had the best running legs, everything came together and I ran a really good race.
My running power for the race was higher than expected as a result and I got a breakthrough for my TP and LTP in Xert. Whilst I was really pleased that I managed to exceed my expectations in the race, I’m not sure that the increase in running fitness has really had the effect on my cycling fitness that Xert seems to think it has. For example, my old LTP of c.210 went up to c.250 which was my previous TP figure!
I’ve been dialling down the intensity on Smart workouts since to around 85-90% to get them back to where they would have been pre-race. Is there any other way I can tell Xert I’m not really as fit (at least in cycling terms) as it seems to think I am? Would Xert adjust my fitness signature if I attempted a hard workout at 100% intensity and then failed on an interval or something?
We recommend syncing any running power data to a secondary profile, rather than mixing it with your cycling power data. This is because your cycling & running fitness signatures are likely different and can lead to issues like what you’re describing, where running BT’s can make the cycling signature too difficult for training.
Thanks Scott, yes I think that’s what I’m experiencing - different running and cycling fitness signatures. Other than lowering the intensity on Xert recommended workouts manually, is there anything else I can do that would flag to the ATA that I’m not quite where it thinks I am? Will the TP and LTP numbers eventually lower if I’m not hitting them in regular workouts?
Once the running activities (with power) are removed, you should see your numbers come back down. But outside of that, yes, Xert allows your Threshold (and HIE & PP) to decay slowly over time…we call this signature decay. The decay setting will impact how quickly your signature decreases over time.
