What is VAM

[JasonHolder]

I know you didn't like Jowwys suggestion, but a 10 mile tt is good at showing progression. No where to hide, and you get to look at the improvement relative to others as well as times. So if conditions vary you still have another result to consider. You get to ride the same course every week. The closest tt course to me has races on it twice
We are quite lucky with hill climbs in the North West with a couple of climbs that are used by a number of cl
The best way of tracking progress is power though.

Surely the same as doing a hill climb for time?

 

[sazzaa]

You should totally be a pro eh.

 

[Hacienda71]

Yep hill climbs do the same thing. The down side is there aren't many hill climbs run on a weekly basis on the same hill.
The other thing to consider is that by losing weight your hill climbing will improve even if your power isn't.

 

[JasonHolder]

Yep hill climbs do the same thing. The down side is there aren't many hill climbs run on a weekly basis on the same hill.
The other thing to consider is that by losing weight your hill climbing will improve even if your power isn't.

TT isnt only reflective of power though either. In a not well thought out statement at all i would say TT is heavily influenced by aero+power and HC is influenced by weight and power? Not being an idiot mate, just trying to see what's the most significant stable method everyone is using to judge in today's day and age.

We just used to ride hard and you were better if you were dropping everyone else who used to drop you. Which is easily influenced and unpredictable to say the least. But now I'm especially aware of burn out, rest and taking it steady.

 

[JasonHolder]

You should totally be a pro eh.

lol

 

[Hacienda71]

Agreed aero as well as power in TT's. Ultimately a power meter is the training aid that most people who get serious about maximising their potential use.
As an aside I rode with one of the top UK domestic pros last year and he said that he rarely used his pm now as he had got to a level he could tell if he was training effectively. I suspect he is in a minority though.

 

[400bhp]

Yeah probably not worth being arsed checking. Are you using power as well? If not, then what?
@Rob3rt cheers.

I pish about too much fella-I'll just go off feel and heart rate.

If I got a PM I'd be an utter arse to live with. I tend to get tunnel vision with certain stuff.

Listen to Hacienda though.

 

[Shadowfax]

Yep hill climbs do the same thing. The down side is there aren't many hill climbs run on a weekly basis on the same hill.
The other thing to consider is that by losing weight your hill climbing will improve even if your power isn't.

Why an event , can't you just time yourself ?

 

[Hacienda71]

Why an event , can't you just time yourself ?

You can do it on your own, but then you are not competing in the same conditions against others, so you don't see your relative improvement in terms of overall position.

 

[marcusjb]

Like much of the stuff that ends up on strava, dodgy gps data can lead to some incredible numbers - I have climbs where I achieved a VAM of 10000 and more, so really not sure it is of any relevance for measuring progress.

PM is the only really unbiased way to measure progress, but they aren't for everyone (indeed, I have found mine very useful in the build up to a specific goal, but will consider selling it after the goal has been achieved).

 

[Shadowfax]

You can do it on your own, but then you are not competing in the same conditions against others, so you don't see your relative improvement in terms of overall position.

Oh I thought that maybe rather subjective in relation to performance. Would you not have to have the same competitors riding at the same level week on week. ?

 

[Hacienda71]

I thought that maybe rather subjective in relation to performance. Would you not have to have the same competitors riding at the same level week on week. ?

You seem to get the same riders riding the local Tt's here week in week out. Yes most people will improve during the course of the season but if you are improving relatively more than others then you are getting an indication your training is going well.
All that said a power meter is the ultimate training tool.

 

[nickyboy]

I can't be arsed to look, but given the description by Rob, I suspect the formula is a quadratic with gradient being squared. Hence the steeper gradients have a greater impact on VAM than your speed.

I didn't think it was that complicated. I assumed (maybe wrongly) that it was just VAM = Vertical metres ascended/hours taken to ascend.

So if you climb 300 vertical metres in 20 minutes, your VAM is 900

Steeper hills generally produce higher VAM because you go slower up steeper hills so there is less air resistance to counter as well as gravity