WTF Is A Performance Management Chart?

I’ve read about this chart a few times and still come away scratching my head.  First, the Performance Management Chart (PMC) is a product of Training Peaks.  I’m not sure if their basic free version comes with a PMC or if it’s the only the paid version.  You can compare the two versions here.

Below is a screen shot of my PMC from June to September.  As you can see, there is just a ton of different things going on.  So I’ll break it down into pieces.



First, let’s start with the red arrow on the bottom, which is pointing to the charts legend.  Working right to left, you can see there are five different types of data on this chart:

Intensity Factor (IF).  This topic was covered in a previous post (click link).  Removing IF from the graph is an option, which I normally do.  Given the scale of the other numbers, IF doesn’t normally fit in well.

If you look at the blue arrow, you can see my IF for that particular day was .75, which tells me that my overall intensity for that day was at an ‘endurance’ pace.  What is interesting though, is that the data is from a sprint triathlon.  Brining this number down is the swimming data since I don’t have HR data.  If I remove swimming from this chart, my IF for the day jumps to .87, which is classified as a ‘tempo’ pace.

The green arrow shows a training day that included biking and running.  The IF on that day is .97, which is classified as ‘lactate threshold’.  On this day, I mountain biked for approximately 15 miles, then I ran in a 5k race (ran with my wife at a very slow pace).

Training Stress Score (TSS).  Again, this was a topic covered in a previous post (click link).  Briefly, TSS quantifies the overall training load in order to prevent over-training and burnout.  The PMC is based heavily on your TSS, which is based on your functional threshold power.  Thus it’s important that you have your FTP entered into the program.

If you look at the blue arrow, you can see my TSS was 205.4, while the green arrow shows only 27.00.  This is the difference between a triathlon stress and training stress.  Per the previous post I did on TSS (see link), the score of 205.4 would indicate that I need one day of rest, but should be good to go by the second day.  The low TSS indicates that no recovery is needed.

Training Stress Balance (TSB). Training Stress Balance is the yellow line and has to do with ‘form’, which is defined as the proper balance between fitness and freshness.  Fitness is a result of training stress and freshness is a result of recovery.  TSB quantifies the balance between your training load and your recover.  Here is a quote from Training Peaks:

“TSB represents the balance of training stress or how well you have been juggling your training load and your rest periods. If we consider that if your TSB is a numerical value and it is 'positive' number, then this would mean you would have a good chance of riding well on during those 'positive' days, and would suggest that you are both fit and fresh. While if your TSB was a 'negative' number, then you it would mean that you are most likely tired from a high training load” – Hunter Allen, Training Peaks

Looking at the blue arrow, my TSB on that day was 13.8, which does consist of a triathlon.  The green arrow, regular training day, shows a TSB of 22.  Since both numbers are positive, as well as the days before the triathlon, then I should be both fresh and fit.  I did do a personal best on the triathlon (blue arrow).  What does concern me though is that my TSB rarely goes negative. This tells me that I may not be pushing myself as hard as I should.

Chronic Training Load (CTL) and Acute Training Load (ATL). The difference between CTL and ATL is simple duration.  CTL measures the long-term affects of your training 15 days ago and later, while ATL measures the short-term impact of your training in the past 14 days.   

So now you know the data involved, how do you use this chart? 

For myself, I watch the CTL and ATL lines.  Now only do I pay attention to high they increase, but also HOW they increase.  A sharp spike could indicate over-training.  with my TSB, I want to make sure it’s positive as I approach a race.  What I still need to learn is the ideal value for CTL, ATL and TSB.  Right now I haven’t been using PMC long enough to say my TSB should be ‘x’ before a race. 

Below are some other things to consider when interpreting your PMC (source):

Some items to consider before interpretation:

• All of your CTL, ATL,TSB values are based on Training Stress Score, which is based on your functional threshold power. So, it's critical that you make sure your TSS values are correct throughout the year. You do this by correctly changing your threshold values in the Power Training Zones box in WKO+. Make sure you assign the correct functional threshold power for each time period that your fitness changed. This will make sure that you are credited for the correct TSS for each ride. For more help with this, please review the Users Guide in WKO+.


• Your CTL and ATL has to begin somewhere(unless you have 'just' started training), therefore you need to set some starting values. A good rule of thumb is to look at the average number of hours you train per day and multiple that by 50 to 75 (for more intense 'trainers'). This will give you an average of how many TSS you score per day. This would give you a good starting point for your CTL and ATL values.


• Your CTL and ATL Constants are something that you can change in order to 'tweak' the emphasis of your 'older' workouts vs. the most recent ones. It also impacts where and how the TSB will predict your performance. I would suggest that you create two charts, and leave one at the default values of 42 and 7, and then mess around with the other one and just watch how it changes and see which appears to be consistent with your form.


• Everyone has a different 'breaking' point and that is most likely something you will have to discover for yourself. We are gathering general CTL guidelines for each of the levels of riders(Cat 4, pro, masters, etc), but by no means have a definitive answer to helping you with finding that CTL which makes you completely explode.


• You may notice that if any of the lines in your PMC become smooth or more rounded than jagged, this is an indicator of either missing data, or no data for that time period. So, just because you have a high TSB (with a smooth or rounded TSB line) during a specific time period, it doesn't mean that you were peaking necessarily.


• The rate of increase in CTL is also important to watch. If CTL increases too rapidly, then this could bring on the dreaded 'over-training' effect.


• How positive does your TSB need to be and for how long? That's a great question and one that everyone will answer differently. Some people will need just to reach a +10 TSB for only 3-4 days before they crack out some of their best numbers for the year. Others will need to reach a +30TSB for 3-4 days before they are 'fresh' enough to create a peak performance.