Cycling power meter

[1] The technology was adapted to cycling in the late 1980s and was tested in professional bicycle racing i.e.: the prototype Power Pacer (Team Strawberry) and by Greg LeMond with the SRM device.

Power meters generally transmit data wirelessly and can be paired to a bike computer, smartphone, or smartwatch.

By providing instantaneous feedback to the athlete, and by allowing more precise analysis of rides, power meters can be a useful tool for training.

Power meters provide an objective measurement of real output that allows training progress to be tracked very simply—something that is more difficult when using, for example, a heart rate monitor alone.

Thus, an athlete performing "interval" training while using a power meter can instantly see that they are producing 300 watts, for example, instead of waiting for their heart rate to climb to a certain point.

In addition, power meters measure the force that moves the bike forward multiplied by the velocity, which is the desired goal.

Further, power meters enable riders to experiment with cadence and evaluate its effect relative to speed and heart rate.

The resulting data allow monitoring of the dominant/non-dominant leg ratio and observe how it varies in relation to different racing and fitness conditions.

Certain newer devices do not use strain gauges and instead measure power through handlebar-mounted units that utilize the principles of Newton's Third Law by measuring a cyclist's opposing forces (gravity, wind resistance, inertia, rolling resistance) and combining these with velocity to determine the rider's power output.

Opposing force power meters measure hill slope (gravity), bike acceleration (inertia), and sometimes, wind speed.