Lance Armstrong doesn’t track his speed when he trains for next month’s Tour de France. The number he craves is measured in watts, not miles per hour. Power output dominates the training of top cyclists like Armstrong because it’s a much more accurate gauge of performance than speed (at the mercy of the wind) or even heart rate (too fickle), say experts.Power never lies because it is a direct measure of the force applied to the bike (torque) that is converted into a measure of power output (watts). By measuring how many watts he expends on a mountain climb, Armstrong can develop a training program that duplicates those race efforts down to the watt. For the past seven years, Armstrong has used a $2,600 device called the SRM Powermeter, developed by German medical engineer Ulrich Schoberer in the late 1980s. The Powermeter measures deflection of the pedal crankarm using tiny strain gauges and converts the measures into watts on a handlebar computer that can store and download 70 hours worth of wattage (and heart rate) for analysis?numbers that Armstrong pores over obsessively. Armstrong sure can crank. During the final hour of a seven-hour stage of the Tour, he can pedal at an average of 400 watts. (Track racers have pushed it over 2,000 watts for a few seconds. The average cyclist can barely light a 100-watt lamp.) “Pro cyclists used to train according to how they felt,” says David Cathcart, marketing director for CycleOps Performance Training Products, which makes a watt measurement device called Powertap. “Now it’s all about metrics.” Related content feature 10 most popular IT certifications for 2023 Certifications are a great way to show employers you have the right IT skills and specializations for the job. These 10 certs are the ones IT pros are most likely to pursue, according to data from Dice. By Sarah K. White May 26, 2023 8 mins Certifications Careers interview Stepping up to the challenge of a global conglomerate CIO role Dr. Amrut Urkude became CIO of Reliance Polyester after his company was acquired by Reliance Industries. He discusses challenges IT leaders face while transitioning from a small company to a large multinational enterprise, and how to overcome them. By Yashvendra Singh May 26, 2023 7 mins Digital Transformation Careers brandpost With the new financial year looming, now is a good time to review your Microsoft 365 licenses By Veronica Lew May 25, 2023 5 mins Lenovo news Alteryx works in generative AI for speedy analytics results OpenAI integration and AI wizardry for report generation are aimed at making Alteryx’s analytics products more accessible. By Jon Gold May 25, 2023 3 mins Analytics Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe