England Football team prepare on Wattbikes for South Africa

Posted by Chris Rowe on Oct 13, 2009

Yesterday, Ben joined the England Football team for some of their training for the upcoming World Cup in South Africa. Ben meet the team at the Altitude Centre, a group of sports scientist who have trained many top sporting teams, most recently the Great British Lions Team before their tour of South Africa.

Ben provided Wattbikes for the fitness testing during the sessions at the request of the Altitude Centre scientists as they needed reliable and consistent results on cadence, power and performance . The team underwent various tests designed to measure physiological and mental performance in similar high-altitude conditions as the team will find in South Africa next year.

Protocols such as ramp tests and co-ordination tests were undertaken under varying altitude conditions simulated through masks feeding different oxygen levels during exercise. Players from teams already using Wattbike equipment, such as Manchester United, updated Ben on how they train and are tested on the Wattbikes in their clubs as well as their peak power performances. We would tell you how powerful the players are, but we wouldn't like to give the opposition any help...