Can anyone recommend Power Meter Pedals for a Spin Bike

stockshares

I'm looking to add a Power Meter to a Spin Bike.

Can anyone recommend Power Meter Pedals that would be suitable for a Spin Bike.

Let me know if there are other options also.

Thanks for any help offered.

chuck eastwood

stockshares wrote: »

I'm looking to add a Power Meter to a Spin Bike.

Can anyone recommend Power Meter Pedals that would be suitable for a Spin Bike.

Let me know if there are other options also.

Thanks for any help offered.

Going to piggyback your post. I have my bike up on turbo most of the time now to try and stay fit. Family etc so I can't get out. Power meter pedals seem mental money

Danville

A single sided power meter on an ultegra crank, 4iii Precision will set you back €303 including delivery.

stockshares

Danville wrote: »

A single sided power meter on an ultegra crank, 4iii Precision will set you back €303 including delivery.

Thank you, from what you say above i presume I cant fit the 4ii precision to my current crank and that i will have to buy the ultegra crank. is that correct?
Is there anywhere reliable where these can be got second hand?

Edit:
I found a full review on it by dcrainmaker for anyone else whos interested in it.
https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2015/12/4iiii-precision-review.html

Here is his Power meter guide for 2018. He doesnt refer to Spin Bikes in this Guide, just Road Bikes and Trainers
https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2018/11/power-meter-buyers-2018.html

His views on the The newest 2018 version of the Precision below
"4IIII PRECISION:
Next, we’ve got 4iiii Precision. They announced four years ago at Interbike, and are now onto their third generation of products – the latest being their ‘Podium’ lineup (with the Podium Pro technically being the 5th generation I think). Their initial product line started with a $399 left-only power meter, but these days they have both left-only and dual left/right options. They also sponsor/equip two WorldTour Pro teams, either directly or via Specialized’s power meters, which are rebranded and slightly tweaked 4iiii power meters.

I’ve seen really good accuracy on both their single and dual leg setups, as I showed in my in-depth review. I haven’t spent much time with their slightly updated Podium lineup however, though I don’t expect that to be a substantially different product.

4iiii is a great option when you want to get into dual-leg power either cheaper than most other options, or if you want to go single-leg now and upgrade later.

Advantages: One of the least expensive power meters on the market today from $399USD. Can be applied to most cranks (non-carbon). Contains both Bluetooth Smart and ANT+ (and dual-broadcasts). Ability to upgrade to dual-leg on some models is key.

Disadvantages: Left-only approach for their left-only units means simply doubling left-leg power, may not be a fully accurate representation of your power (high or lower). However, if you have the dual-leg setup, that’s not a concern."

ED E

Shane Miller has ripped apart the accuracy of Shimano based Right/Dual Sided PMs. The left onlys work fine but obviously dont account for R/L biases. This is for all brands.


A pair of Assioma pedals at 650US that give really good data seems like a better offering than a 400US single sider, will work on anything. If you're budget constrained then the InPeak PowerCrank Gen II is probably the cheapest useable left only at €330 if your spin can accept a Shimano left crank.

stockshares

ED E wrote: »

Shane Miller has ripped apart the accuracy of Shimano based Right/Dual Sided PMs. The left onlys work fine but obviously dont account for R/L biases. This is for all brands.


A pair of Assioma pedals at 650US that give really good data seems like a better offering than a 400US single sider, will work on anything. If you're budget constrained then the InPeak PowerCrank Gen II is probably the cheapest useable left only at €330 if your spin can accept a Shimano left crank.

Thanks, Ill check those out.

Why would left sided PMs work better than right sided PMs?

Taxuser1

i have Assioma pedals for about 6 months now and i'm very happy with them. check out the dc rainmaker review on them - as they're on a spin bike you don't have to worry about crashes but if you were to transfer the pedal to a roadbike and have an incident, the body of the pedal can be replaced for under 60 quid as the power gauge is separate.

no issue with calibration, power seems always to be consistent. happy out with them, i bought a set.

stockshares

Taxuser1 wrote: »

i have Assioma pedals for about 6 months now and i'm very happy with them. check out the dc rainmaker review on them - as they're on a spin bike you don't have to worry about crashes but if you were to transfer the pedal to a roadbike and have an incident, the body of the pedal can be replaced for under 60 quid as the power gauge is separate.

no issue with calibration, power seems always to be consistent. happy out with them, i bought a set.

He recommends this alright.

Why are basic Pms so expensive considering other sports tech like GPS and HRM watches have basic/mid-range models that are within the budget of almost everyone.

I was shocked when I seen the prices.

ED E

stockshares wrote: »

Why would left sided PMs work better than right sided PMs?

Lefts: Fine
Left+Rights: Non shimano fine
Left+Rights: Shimanos not fine

The R8000 style crank/spider just isnt a very good "host" for a PM.

stockshares wrote: »

Why are basic Pms so expensive considering other sports tech like GPS and HRM watches have basic/mid-range models that are within the budget of almost everyone.

I was shocked when I seen the prices.

Consumer GPS chips have been around decades and sell huge volumes. Strain gauges (what a PM is) are industrial tech, you might find them on suspension bridges or cranes etc, that is just recently moving into the consumer space. The volumes are much much lower and its less of a "solved problem". A GPS unit works the same at 5* and 25*C. A strain gauge changes a lot with a slight temperature change so theres a lot of R&D to get even roughly correct numbers. Wahoo just buy an MTK chip off the shelf and build an Android app, done.

stockshares

ED E wrote: »

Lefts: Fine
Left+Rights: Non shimano fine
Left+Rights: Shimanos not fine

The R8000 style crank/spider just isnt a very good "host" for a PM.



Consumer GPS chips have been around decades and sell huge volumes. Strain gauges (what a PM is) are industrial tech, you might find them on suspension bridges or cranes etc, that is just recently moving into the consumer space. The volumes are much much lower and its less of a "solved problem". A GPS unit works the same at 5* and 25*C. A strain gauge changes a lot with a slight temperature change so theres a lot of R&D to get even roughly correct numbers. Wahoo just buy an MTK chip off the shelf and build an Android app, done.

Do people rely more on PMs now to manage their training/race effort rather than use Heart Rate Monitors or do they use both.

I would like to use a PM and see how the output relates to HR but I'm not sure I can justify the expense.

tuxy

stockshares wrote: »

Do people rely more on PMs now to manage their training/race effort rather than use Heart Rate Monitors or do they use both.

I would like to use a PM and see how the output relates to HR but I'm not sure I can justify the expense.

Power is way more accurate and responds faster. You're HR data will lag behind by a few minutes but with power it is instant.
Also 200 watts is 200 watts , unlike heart rate where 150 BPM will not always be the same effort as it changes depending on how much sleep you got and maybe you have a mild illness and many other factors.

That said you can train to a high level using only HR, I know loads of lads racing at A1 using HR and a few don't even have that.

So if the money is burning a hole in your pocket or you want a fun toy go for it but don't feel like you need to have one.
I think the only exception I can think of is if you want to be competitive in Time trials, it's probably needed to be successful at that but a power metre is not even that expensive compared to all the other suff you will need too.

ED E

stockshares wrote: »

Do people rely more on PMs now to manage their training/race effort rather than use Heart Rate Monitors or do they use both.

I would like to use a PM and see how the output relates to HR but I'm not sure I can justify the expense.

I have HR data but wearing two layers or three totally changes the results so it's useless as a training tool. Power is really the only game in town.

tuxy

ED E wrote: »

I have HR data but wearing two layers or three totally changes the results so it's useless as a training tool. Power is really the only game in town.

There must be something wrong with your HR monitor. HR has its flaws and limitations but it's not that bad.

Taxuser1

i use both and pay attention to both. some days i'll fell under the weather with heart rate spiked and just can't do the power. so gotta listen to the body in those circumstances and for that reason alone I need that heart data if even to look back and assess against the type of training or recovery illness or life events which affected performance. always handy to have both as a look back. power is very much a current use tool for training.

stockshares

tuxy wrote: »

Power is way more accurate and responds faster. You're HR data will lag behind by a few minutes but with power it is instant.
Also 200 watts is 200 watts , unlike heart rate where 150 BPM will not always be the same effort as it changes depending on how much sleep you got and maybe you have a mild illness and many other factors.

That said you can train to a high level using only HR, I know loads of lads racing at A1 using HR and a few don't even have that.

So if the money is burning a hole in your pocket or you want a fun toy go for it but don't feel like you need to have one.
I think the only exception I can think of is if you want to be competitive in Time trials, it's probably needed to be successful at that but a power metre is not even that expensive compared to all the other suff you will need too.

Thanks, can you recommend a guide on how to build a training program using a PM.

I have a guide for building a program using a HRM(Total heart rate Training by Joe Friel). Something similar for PMs would be ideal.

ED E

tuxy wrote: »

There must be something wrong with your HR monitor. HR has its flaws and limitations but it's not that bad.

There's not, core temp up = HR up all other things equal.

If I wear shorts and short sleeves my max HR is about 176BPM, cover the arms legs and wear a jacket: 187BPM.

Thats the guts of a full Zone.

tuxy

I guess if you were to decide to not wear removable layers and got the weather forecast completely wrong.
If my core temp was high enough or low enough for that much of a change I would be either sweating or shivering too much to train.

Have other people found that very minor changes in core temp leads to major changes in heart rate? I've not experienced it, is it normal?

tuxy

stockshares wrote: »

Thanks, can you recommend a guide on how to build a training program using a PM.

I have a guide for building a program using a HRM(Total heart rate Training by Joe Friel). Something similar for PMs would be ideal.

Training and Racing with a Power Meter, Andrew Coggan is what was recommended to me but I never read it.

I don't take my training too serious so for me the power meter is more of a fun toy. I know my training zones and if I'm cycling large distances it makes things easier as keeping the same average power even while going up hill really helps.
I'm sure there is overlap with the HR training so you could probably use much the same idea only your data is more accurate with a power meter.

stockshares

Good stuff, I'll see do they have that on Kindle.
Thanks for your help with this

G1032

ED E wrote: »

There's not, core temp up = HR up all other things equal.

If I wear shorts and short sleeves my max HR is about 176BPM, cover the arms legs and wear a jacket: 187BPM.

Thats the guts of a full Zone.

That doesn't sound right to me. Firstly, your max HR is your max HR, and is not dependant on what you're wearing.
Secondly, I've never heard before of someone seeing a full zone of difference in HR depending on what they're wearing. That's just nuts.

In any case, you should know yourself from perceived effort what zone you're in. Like, HR monitor or no HR monitor, after a while using HR for training you're going to know what riding Tempo feels like. You're going to know when you're riding Threshold etc etc.

Someone posted earlier that they know plenty A1's that don't have power meters. Same as that here... I know plenty A1's and A2's that train only to HR and they hoover up as many points as anyone with a power meter.

ED E

1*C = ~ 10Bpm, you can find published papers to corroborate. If you consistently use a skinsuit thats fine but often I'll leave at 6PM and dress for the last leg home at 9PM when its freezing.

Non scientific summary from the sufferfest:

Compounding the issue, as core temperature rises, your body will divert more blood to your skin in an attempt to get rid of that extra heat. Your heart is forced to increase cardiac output to supply the higher demands of both your legs and your skin.

I've done one particular climb in Dublin many times and was getting very varied HR results for rather similar times. I thought it was fatigue, ToD, caffeine etc. Nope. Wearing a jacket. Shifts HR way up.


If you don't believe it find a decent climb and do it 10x alternating overdressed and chest open to the air then review the data.

eeeee

ED E wrote: »

Shane Miller has ripped apart the accuracy of Shimano based Right/Dual Sided PMs. The left onlys work fine but obviously dont account for R/L biases. This is for all brands.


A pair of Assioma pedals at 650US that give really good data seems like a better offering than a 400US single sider, will work on anything. If you're budget constrained then the InPeak PowerCrank Gen II is probably the cheapest useable left only at €330 if your spin can accept a Shimano left crank.

Why the Shimano inaccuracy? Is it for crank based systems or pedal based systems as well?

tuxy

eeeee wrote: »

Why the Shimano inaccuracy? Is it for crank based systems or pedal based systems as well?

The structure of the right side of the Shimano crank is just not a good place to put strain gauges.
Pedals are unaffected by this.