# Power smoothing when using smart trainer and power meter **URL:** \ **Category:** Training\ **Tags:** power-meter\ **Created:** [July 23, 2019, 10:39am UTC](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t/power-smoothing-when-using-smart-trainer-and-power-meter/18577 "2019-07-23T10:39:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![andreakausel](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/trainerroad/forum/user_avatar/www.trainerroad.com/andreakausel/32/22396_2.png) [@andreakausel](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/u/andreakausel)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 10:39am UTC](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t/power-smoothing-when-using-smart-trainer-and-power-meter/18577/1 "2019-07-23T10:39:12Z")
Hey folks, Question for you: I recently got a power meter and did the pairing and calibration process in the current version of the Mac program. My smoothing is set to 3 seconds. When I trained with just my Wahoo Kickr, I didn’t have any issues, but not that I have my power meter paired, the power is really jumpy (which is making even an endurance effort hard because it’s so spikes!). Am I doing something wrong? I tried increasing to 5 seconds, didn’t help any. [Update: I turned my power meter to cadence only and the problem went away] If there’s anothet post on this, happy to be pointed there (my search didn’t yield any hits). Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![mcneese.chad](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/trainerroad/forum/user_avatar/www.trainerroad.com/mcneese.chad/32/15056_2.png) [@mcneese.chad](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/u/mcneese.chad)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 12:32pm UTC](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t/power-smoothing-when-using-smart-trainer-and-power-meter/18577/2 "2019-07-23T12:32:20Z")
The Wahoo app defaults to “Enable Power Smoothing in ERG Mode”. It 8s a VERY aggressive smoothing and effectively lies by showing power smoother thanks possible for a human to produce. [![](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/trainerroad/original/3X/2/2/222a4bfb446010010a52b18ea7733acf5ef5bbcf.jpeg "ERG Mode Power Smoothing on Wahoo KICKR & KICKR SNAP Smart Trainers") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7L7hfT0I7E0) I suggest turning off the setting in the Wahoo app. Read your power meter as a full PM in the TR app, and get used to jagged power graphs, because they are real. ---
**Author:** ![jkc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a4c791/32.png) [@jkc](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/u/jkc)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 4:54pm UTC](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t/power-smoothing-when-using-smart-trainer-and-power-meter/18577/3 "2019-07-23T16:54:31Z")
It’s more than rolling averages, smoothing, which is what you typically see on a head unit or other applications/trainers. The straight jumps between high low intervals gives that away. 8s? It is a bit generous. Looks more than 30 secs for the most part. The worst part of this is that the raw data is not preserved. ---
**Author:** ![SDooley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3e96dc/32.png) [@SDooley](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/u/SDooley)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 5:04pm UTC](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t/power-smoothing-when-using-smart-trainer-and-power-meter/18577/4 "2019-07-23T17:04:00Z")
I used to think the line should just be straight and kept looking for ways to make it straight. At some point I just let the thought go. I spent way too much time trying to fix something that wasn’t going to happen. As long as your lap power is close to the target power then everything is working. I have a Quarq power meter and an original Kickr paired to a Mac laptop, 3s smoothing. My graphs looks like a bunch of up and down lines, but my lap power matches my targeted interval power. The work is being done, you will not a straight line. ---
**Author:** ![andreakausel](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/trainerroad/forum/user_avatar/www.trainerroad.com/andreakausel/32/22396_2.png) [@andreakausel](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/u/andreakausel)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2019, 11:25pm UTC](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t/power-smoothing-when-using-smart-trainer-and-power-meter/18577/5 "2019-08-01T23:25:52Z")
@mcneese.chad - how do you turn off power smoothing in the Wahoo app? @SDooley - do you still use your power meter for your ramp test? I just did one, and it wasn’t keeping on the power, sometimes 10 watts higher or lower, despite an even cadence (was holding 105 rpm for most of it), and I think it messed up my end result as a consequence. I am thinking of just using the Wahoo power gauge for the next ramp test. ---
**Author:** ![mcneese.chad](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/trainerroad/forum/user_avatar/www.trainerroad.com/mcneese.chad/32/15056_2.png) [@mcneese.chad](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/u/mcneese.chad)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 12:42am UTC](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t/power-smoothing-when-using-smart-trainer-and-power-meter/18577/6 "2019-08-02T00:42:16Z")
> [@andreakausel](#): > > @mcneese.chad - how do you turn off power smoothing in the Wahoo app? Watch at this point in Shane’s vid, and it shows the steps. [![](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/trainerroad/original/3X/2/2/222a4bfb446010010a52b18ea7733acf5ef5bbcf.jpeg "ERG Mode Power Smoothing on Wahoo KICKR & KICKR SNAP Smart Trainers") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7L7hfT0I7E0&t=100) ---
**Author:** ![SDooley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3e96dc/32.png) [@SDooley](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/u/SDooley)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 1:08am UTC](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t/power-smoothing-when-using-smart-trainer-and-power-meter/18577/7 "2019-08-02T01:08:28Z")
I’ve only done two ramp tests, but each time I used the same set-up, Kickr and Quarq (3 sec smoothing and power match on). I still get the up and down lines, but I feel the tests were spot on. I prefer the 8 min or 20 min tests myself. I feel like my VO2 is a limiter in the ramp test. After a race I have in a few weeks I’m going to do both, but a week apart and see what happens. ---
**Author:** ![stickmandj](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/trainerroad/forum/user_avatar/www.trainerroad.com/stickmandj/32/146276_2.png) [@stickmandj](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/u/stickmandj)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 5:38am UTC](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t/power-smoothing-when-using-smart-trainer-and-power-meter/18577/8 "2019-08-02T05:38:56Z")
When you switched to cadence only you essentially went back to not using the power meter and just the Kickr. I went through the same thing trying to figure it out. The spikes I was experiencing were not simply because now I was seeing the actual data though. I had power match turned on in both the wahoo app and in Trainerroad. For some reason when both were on it was like they were fighting each other. I assumed that I had to set it in the wahoo utility for it to work properly but I was wrong. My suggestion would be to just use power match in Trainerroad and turn it off in the wahoo utility and see if it makes a difference. You still won’t see absurdly smooth kickr-like power but it will hopefully help with the crazy spikes if you are experiencing what I was. People on here were very helpful but incorrectly assumed that the variations I was seeing were just the expected (and completely normal) fluctuations of reading from an actual power meter. ---
**Author:** ![MI-XC](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/trainerroad/forum/user_avatar/www.trainerroad.com/mi-xc/32/12993_2.png) [@MI-XC](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/u/MI-XC)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2019, 1:00pm UTC](https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t/power-smoothing-when-using-smart-trainer-and-power-meter/18577/9 "2019-08-03T13:00:57Z")
> [@andreakausel](#): > > sometimes 10 watts higher or lower, despite an even cadence (was holding 105 rpm for most of it), and I think it messed up my end result as a consequence That is how the human body works, you are not a machine. It is not uncommon to be 10+ watts up or down of the target power because it is impossible to constantly hold a power number. The smooth line you have been seeing in the past is just a visual representation and not what power you were actually doing.