FTP test #2, Dec 3 2011

FTP on Oct 19
Avg power: 224.2 (236 – 5%)
Avg HR: 181
Avg cadence: 86
Weight: 150lb; 68.04kg
FTP: 3.29 watts/kg = 1.49 watts/lb

Today's test:
Avg power: 210.9 (222 – 5%)
Avg HR: 183
Avg cadence: 93
Weight: 150lb; 68.04kg
FTP: 3.09 watts/kg = 1.406 watts/lb

My power is 14 watts lower today than it was 6 weeks ago.

I was almost crying 10min in because it was so freaking hard. I tried to push watts at around 240 and I did it for around 8min and then I could not do it any more.

I have 3 theories:
1, whatever I am doing bike-wise is not working. The trend in last few weeks has been HR up, power down, so exact opposite to what it is supposed to be doing.
2, all other excitement in my life (e.g. LSAT this morning) is taking its toll, although I am not realizing it
3, I have changed saddle and thus position since the last test

Plus I have changed HR monitor since the last test therefore HR are probably not 100% comparable.
Oh yeah, and Thanksgiving (aka pies) and ice-cream last week might have something to do with it but honestly, I do not think that my diet this and past week was much different from what it had been around Oct 19.

I am not going to freak out about this one crappy workout (although sure, I am pretty mad now because this is not what it is supposed to be). I have over 8 months till IM. It sounds like a long time so hopefully I can become a decent cyclist by then. Although I do not have a clear definition what a decent cyclist mean. I just want to place high in that f***ing thing.
However, if this trend continues in January then I am probably going to start freaking out and then we need to start thinking about tweaking it little bit.