# Is 3.3 watts per kilo good or bad?



## User48980 (29 Jan 2017)

I am just trying to gauge my cycling strength, I have a power meter and basically my ftp has come out at around 217 watts. I am 65.7 kilos, so its 3.3 watts per kilo.

I am 15 currently, but do you think I would have enough power to compete in cycling competitions?
Just getting prepared for my first cycling summer season.

Thanks.


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## Fab Foodie (29 Jan 2017)

Who cares?


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## User48980 (29 Jan 2017)

Fab Foodie said:


> Who cares?


me


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## Fab Foodie (29 Jan 2017)

User48980 said:


> me


Ok, it's not as good as 4 but it's better than 2.


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## screenman (29 Jan 2017)

User48980 said:


> I am just trying to gauge my cycling strength, I have a power meter and basically my ftp has come out at around 217 watts. I am 65.7 kilos, so its 3.3 watts per kilo.
> 
> I am 15 currently, but do you think I would have enough power to compete in cycling competitions?
> Just getting prepared for my first cycling summer season.
> ...



The answer to that is, what type of competition?


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## User48980 (29 Jan 2017)

screenman said:


> The answer to that is, what type of competition?


Not really sure, general maybe? races, century, hill climb?


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## Hacienda71 (29 Jan 2017)

Depends on what type of competitions you are thinking of entering. Watts per kg are less important on a flat TT than a hilly roadrace. If you are thinking of road racing or crits then your ability to recover from balls out efforts is also important. You are relatively light though so a bit of work on your ftp and you should do fine. The only way. to find out though is to give it a go. At 15 you have plenty of time to decide what you like to race.


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## screenman (29 Jan 2017)

User48980 said:


> Not really sure, general maybe? races, century, hill climb?



Time trials are a great place to start. As for centuries I do not know of any races at 15 that are that long, most are 40 minutes or were. Hill climbs, not many about but no reason no too.


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## Fab Foodie (29 Jan 2017)

User48980 said:


> I am just trying to gauge my cycling strength, I have a power meter and basically my ftp has come out at around 217 watts. I am 65.7 kilos, so its 3.3 watts per kilo.
> 
> I am 15 currently, but do you think I would have enough power to compete in cycling competitions?
> Just getting prepared for my first cycling summer season.
> ...


The sensible answer is to join a local cycling club and find out. If you let is know where you're based and maybe domebody can recommend one.

Agree with @screenman go and run some local 10 mile TT's. That will tell you much more than numbers alone.


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## User48980 (29 Jan 2017)

Fab Foodie said:


> The sensible answer is to join a local cycling club and find out. If you let is know where you're based and maybe domebody can recommend one.


I am already in a cycling club, but I was just hoping for opinions on what sort of watts per kilo I would need for racing. 

I am now in group 2 in our cycling club. We do about 30km/h. 
I started cycling in November when I got my road bike, and was in group 3, about 24km/h


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## Fab Foodie (29 Jan 2017)

User48980 said:


> I am already in a cycling club, but I was just hoping for opinions on what sort of watts per kilo I would need for racing.
> 
> I am now in group 2 in our cycling club. We do about 30km/h.
> I started cycling in November when I got my road bike, and was in group 3, about 24km/h


Does your club race or TT?


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## nickyboy (29 Jan 2017)

Have a look at the chart embedded in this blog which gives a fair idea of the watts/kg achieved by different levels of racers

If you've only been cycling a couple of months then your FTP of 214W is good and there's loads of room for improvement given you've only just started. I'm sure you'll do fine in races, particularly ones where there is some up and down

http://blog.bikeridr.com/2012/03/perspective-of-power/


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## Tin Pot (29 Jan 2017)

User48980 said:


> I am just trying to gauge my cycling strength, I have a power meter and basically my ftp has come out at around 217 watts. I am 65.7 kilos, so its 3.3 watts per kilo.
> 
> I am 15 currently, but do you think I would have enough power to compete in cycling competitions?
> Just getting prepared for my first cycling summer season.
> ...



From what I've read it would generally indicate the ability of a cat 1 rider, performing well in local events.

Iirc, roughly speaking, 4W/Kg should be winning local and competitiave at regional, 5W/Kg is TdF level.

Short answer, yes


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## HarryTheDog (29 Jan 2017)

Your only 15 so hard to say. According to this website if you were a adult,you would be a moderate American cat 4 ( could be a equivalent of a uk cat 3)
https://cyclingtips.com/2009/07/just-how-good-are-these-guys/
So if you are 15 and have the equivalent FTP of a UK cat 3 adult I would say you are doing very well. I am assuminng your FTP tested is the equivalent of a full hour. ( so if you did a 20 minute test you adjusted the figures)


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## S-Express (29 Jan 2017)

User48980 said:


> I am just trying to gauge my cycling strength, I have a power meter and basically my ftp has come out at around 217 watts. I am 65.7 kilos, so its 3.3 watts per kilo.
> 
> I am 15 currently, but do you think I would have enough power to compete in cycling competitions?
> Just getting prepared for my first cycling summer season.



w/kg is pretty much irrelevant as a measure of how you might fare in crits, or road races. The main considerations will be how you respond and recover in the face of repeated hard, high intensity efforts, whether you can stay in the mix until the end, how much energy you can conserve and how much you have left in the tank for the sprint.

Forget about whether your wattage is good enough and just go find out for real by pinning a number on and racing.

A race fit 15yo will easily be the equivalent of 3rd cat, possibly higher.


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## T.M.H.N.E.T (29 Jan 2017)

Most of the early season A4/junior races here that newbies would be targetting are flat. ie:Phoenix CC Nutts Corner and multiple others that run at The Loup, Moneymore

What club is this? Most have some form of racing oriented run this time of year


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## Racing roadkill (31 Jan 2017)

User48980 said:


> I am just trying to gauge my cycling strength, I have a power meter and basically my ftp has come out at around 217 watts. I am 65.7 kilos, so its 3.3 watts per kilo.
> 
> I am 15 currently, but do you think I would have enough power to compete in cycling competitions?
> Just getting prepared for my first cycling summer season.
> ...


Lance Armstrong was putting out about 7 Watts per kilo, when he 'won' the Tour de France in 2005 with an average speed of Close on 26 mph. We know he was a cheating barsteward re drugs, but 7 W/Kg would see you competing at the G.C. end of a grand tour.providing you could do that repeatedly over the whole duration of the race, and be able to recover sufficiently between stages of course.


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## S-Express (31 Jan 2017)

Racing roadkill said:


> Lance Armstrong was putting out about 7 Watts per kilo, when he 'won' the Tour de France in 2005 with an average speed of Close on 26 mph. We know he was a cheating barsteward re drugs, but 7 W/Kg would see you competing at the G.C. end of a grand tour.



Lance's data is no longer relevant. Froome's threshold power was around 6w/kg for his last tour win. As I said earlier, w/kg may not be the best way of gauging your fitness, especially if you are riding crits or flat road races.


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## Racing roadkill (31 Jan 2017)

S-Express said:


> Lance's data is no longer relevant. Froome's threshold power was around 6w/kg for his last tour win. As I said earlier, w/kg may not be the best way of gauging your fitness, especially if you are riding crits or flat road races.


It pretty much is the best way. As I said, it also depends on your restorative powers and ability to keep the output constant over the duration of an event ( particularly multi stage / multi day events ) but as a recordable metric, power to weight is hard to argue with.


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## S-Express (31 Jan 2017)

Racing roadkill said:


> but as a recordable metric, power to weight is hard to argue with.



Not for flat events, it isn't. ie the kind of events like the OP is likely to be riding as a 15yo.


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## Fab Foodie (31 Jan 2017)

Junior races have restricted gearing as well.


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## Tin Pot (31 Jan 2017)

S-Express said:


> Not for flat events, it isn't. ie the kind of events like the OP is likely to be riding as a 15yo.



What other objective measure of 'cycling fitness' would you advise a 15 year old who already has a power meter?

You've made your point, but for a simple answer to encourage the OP, watts/kg is more than adequate.


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## S-Express (31 Jan 2017)

Tin Pot said:


> What other objective measure of 'cycling fitness' would you advise a 15 year old who already has a power meter?



As I alluded to in a previous reply, the best 'objective' measure of cycling fitness is to test yourself in an actual race made up of your peer group.



Tin Pot said:


> You've made your point, but for a simple answer to encourage the OP, watts/kg is more than adequate.



As I said, w/kg tells you nothing about how you may fare in a flat crit.


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## Tin Pot (31 Jan 2017)

S-Express said:


> As I alluded to in a previous reply, the best 'objective' measure of cycling fitness is to test yourself in an actual race made up of your peer group.
> 
> 
> 
> As I said, w/kg tells you nothing about how you may fare in a flat crit.



Well I think I've been clear - you're sending completely the wrong message, by continually emphasising and reinforcing misinformation. It's a shame, and I hope the OP either disregards your posts, or understands they aren't not answering his question.


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## S-Express (31 Jan 2017)

Tin Pot said:


> Well I think I've been clear - you're sending completely the wrong message, by continually emphasising and reinforcing misinformation. It's a shame, and I hope the OP either disregards your posts, or understands they aren't not answering his question.



Not with you, sorry. What are you disagreeing with? Try and be specific, so I can clarify.


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## S-Express (31 Jan 2017)

Seeing as you've gone quiet, I'll clarify for you.

w/kg is not a good indicator of racing performance, especially on flat events where weight is not really a factor. FTP is not really a guide to race performance either - although obviously the fitter you are, the better your FTP is likely to be.

For circuit races and flatter road races (ie most of them, at amateur level), your critical factors will be numbers like your 1min and 5min power - in other words, your short/medium term efforts, which typify most circuits, crits and RRs. There are few, if any, amateur races which involve the type of long, steady climbing where w/kg is going to be a major concern.

So, for the kind of racing the lad is likely to be doing, w/kg or (to a lesser extent) FTP, should not really be a concern. Which is why I said the best measure is going to be to get out there and try it.

So, if any of that sounds like the 'wrong message' or 'misinformation' to you, I'd like to know why.


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