Top Strategies to Analyze Your Power-Based Workouts
Improving your fitness and confidence in workouts is as easy as reviewing your data after each run. With Stryd’s workout analysis, the data you need is at your fingertips!
In this post, you will learn the top strategies to analyze your power-based workouts and learn how to improve your workout execution for next time.
We'll guide you through the practical steps that runners of all ability levels can use. So, let's dive in, and discover how Stryd’s industry-leading power data and workout analysis can take your running to the next level.
Why is it important to analyze your data after every workout?
The use of running power data can have immense impacts on your training. Specifically, data from tools like Stryd provides a treasure trove of insights, allowing you to accurately gauge your workout intensity, optimize your pacing strategy, and elevate your training regimen.
Analyzing running power-based workout data after every run is crucial for several reasons:
- Personalized Feedback & Effective Training: Every runner is unique, with different strengths, weaknesses, and goals. By examining power data, you can get personalized feedback on your performance, helping you understand what's working and what needs adjustment in your training. You can also tailor your workouts to be more effective, ensuring you're not overtraining or undertraining.
- Progress Tracking: To know if you're improving, you need to track your progress. Power data gives you objective metrics to see if you're getting stronger, faster, or more efficient over time.
- Motivation: Seeing tangible evidence of your hard work can be a significant morale booster. When you notice improvements in your power data, it can motivate you to stick with your training plan and push even harder.
Strategy #1: Compare your power output against your training targets
A straightforward way to check your power data is to see how your actual power matches up with your workout goals.
This method shows if you hit your targets for the day. If you did, great! You can move on to your next workout. If not, think about tweaks for your next run.
Look at your power moment by moment and also the overall average. Compare these to your set goals. Do this for each part of your workout.
If you mostly hit your targets but missed a few, focus on those parts. Ask yourself why. For instance, if you push too hard during a rest period, you can watch your power more closely next time.
But if you missed most of your targets, think about your upcoming workouts. Maybe you need more rest or a change in motivation. For example, if you didn't push hard enough in a tough workout, maybe rest more before the next intense session.
By reviewing your data and thinking about each part, you can spot issues and plan better for your next run.
Want to make your workout analysis easy?
Check out the workout pairing feature, offered as part of the Stryd Membership, that gives you planned vs completed breakdowns of your training.
Read more on workout pairing here >
Strategy #2: Monitor trends on uphills and downhills
For many runners, keeping a steady intensity while running on hills can be tricky. Getting this right is worth the effort.
The good news is that running hills with precision becomes a simple practice with Stryd.
A top tip for refining your workouts is to check if you're using too much or too little power on uphills or downhills.
For instance, pushing too hard on uphills might seem minor, but it can tire you out over a long run. This can affect not just that workout but also your next ones, setting back your training.
Overdoing it on downhills has its pitfalls too. While it might feel like you're gaining speed easily, pushing too hard can lead to fatigue from the extra impact. This can create problems in the long run.
So, when reviewing your workout, look at the hill sections. Check if you're staying on target with your power, especially on those ups and downs.
Strategy #3: Power is your key to understanding trends in fatigue and form
Using power to guide your runs adds meaning to the rest of your data. When you can keep your running power and your effort steady, you get a steady baseline to see how your running form and fatigue trend.
Take "Leg Spring Stiffness" (LSS) from Stryd, for example.
Leg Spring Stiffness is a measure of how well a runner recycles the energy applied to the ground. Think of your leg as a spring upon which your body “bounces.” The stiffer the spring, the less energy you must produce to propel yourself forward with each step.
If your LSS drops during a run but your power stays the same, it might mean you're fatiguing. You could consider inserting more long runs into your training regimen and see if this helps you keep a higher LSS throughout your run.
You can also check other metrics like cadence, ground contact time, and vertical oscillation.
These form metrics help you see if your running style changes even as your running intensity holds constant. It's a clear way to see how your form shifts during a run.
By maintaining a consistent power, fatigue insights will be revealed in many of your runs.
Join the Live Stream
We will go live next Tuesday, August 22 at Noon MT with a live discussion and demonstration using these strategies on workout data. Tap on the embed below for more details on the livestream!
Conclusion
Accessing and analyzing your workout data has never been more straightforward or easy.
Tools like Stryd have revolutionized our understanding, offering invaluable insights that help fine-tune workout intensity, pacing, and overall training approach.
Throughout this post, we've discussed the top strategies to analyze your power-based workouts, aiming to refine your performance for future sessions. Remember, with the right analysis and tools like Stryd, you're well on your way to elevating your running prowess.