Newcastle Falcons work the Wattbike
Posted by Matt Moran on Jul 26, 2011
It's not just rugby league where you'll find Wattbikes (such as Wigan Warriors) but we're also now working with Newcastle Falcons rugby union club who compete in the Aviva Premiership. Steve and I took a trip up to Newcastle a couple of weeks ago and while Steve explained to Falcons Head of Strength and Conditioning, Andy Smith, how the Wattbike worked and how to interpret the data from the Performance Computer, I was busy filming some of the players who were keen to jump on and give the Wattbike a real good go.
As with the guys at Wigan Warriors, the Newcastle Falcons players were keen to see what their peak power scores were but also interested in how to develop good cycling technique by monitoring their pedal stroke on Polar View. We love working with players and coaches from both rugby codes and we often think it's the ultimate test when a guy who is 20 stone (280lbs / 127kg) steps on a Wattbike and does a real hard session.
Andy had heard about the Wattbike from his friend, Mark Bitcon at Wigan Warriors, and he'd seen the great work Mark was doing with his players on the bike and the success they were having. He'll be using the Wattbikes for interval sessions mainly but also to help track players progress during rehabilitation. See the video below to hear more from Andy and watch a couple of intense short power sprints from the likes of Joe Graham, Matt Thompson, James Fitzpatrick and Radford Pennycook