How many Watts is good?

[Dannywayoflife]

Guys I'm a total virgin when it comes to cycling but I've started using a watt bike a lot at the gym to do intervals and sprints on. Now obviously it tells you how many watts your producing but I have no idea what's a good level and what's a average level. The other day on one of my tabata springs I managed just under 800watts is that good?

[hernanu]

That's awesome Danny - back to being type A. Don't know what's good (I skip right over the watts reading, prefer the MPH).

Cool to hear you're pushing it.

[chuckm]

How much time on the bike did you spend to produce the 800 watts?

[einreb]

It depends on the time.  regardless, its cool to have benchmarks to build on.

For what its worth... my peak is at around 1200 watts, 850 for 30 seconds, 300 for 20 minutes, etc.  I'm a middle aged mediocre occasional bike racer.

-Bernie

[Dannywayoflife]

That's for around 30 seconds. Never done anything on a bike so it's all totally new to me. Just looking for other ways to get super fit other than running and stuff with high impact. :)

[petemeads]

Just joined a gym with Wattbikes, one Pro and one Trainer, and have been using the trainer for both steady 10 or 20 km rides and sprint intervals, 6 and 20 seconds and 60 second tests. Power is nothing like you guys but it is improving. The best things are the polar plot of pedalling efficiency, to encourage me to pedal 'in a circle', and the amount of data you can collect on a memory stick. Interestingly my left (resurfaced) leg is tending to do 51 - 52% of the work, probably because it does not want to flare outwards like my (arthritic) right leg. Hopefully when this one finally gets done I shall be more effective!

Pete

[phillwad]

On a spin bike at my local Y. I watch my wattage over a 60 min ride. 240 is doable, 280 is possible.  You can buy training programs based on watts - 250 300 are typical. 800 would be amazing but not often look at very short sprints.


Longer rides more typical.