Incorrect power meter data

[erlendostbye]

I have a 4iiii power meter, and i have discovered that there is a discrepancy between the average power i displayed in Garmin Connect and Strava. On my last ride Garmin claimed 223W, while Strava claimed 167W (Not too big numbers... hehe). That 56W in difference. I have checked that the power meter is registered, and that Strava does not estimate the power. Does anyone know how to fix this? 

[Johndinis]

Hi. 
completed my ride this morning, avr power was 190w and calories 847 

two hours later I checked on the app and the avr power has now dropped to 97 and calories dropped to 420 

how is this possible after morning ride has been done and completed 

[rafiniv]

Yes. I changed my setup in the Garmin to include zeros when calculating power!
I set the same settings as my friends.
It seems to my friends that the data from the Garmin app goes to Strava exactly as it is on the Garmin without any additional calculation on Strava.
For me, they are probably calculated in Strava, so I get a much lower result.

[Jane]

Hello @gerardgonzales and @rafiniv 

Thanks to your both for posting.  Have you tried changing the setting on your recording device to include zeros when calculating power?  If not, I would recommend giving that a try.   

[Jane · Accepted solution]

Hello @erlendostbye 

Thanks for posting about this and apologies for any confusion.

Weighted Average Power is similar to - but NOT the same as - Garmin's Normalized Power.
Both numbers attempt to capture the average effort of a workout by taking into account lactate accumulation and other types of fatigue. Strava uses an algorithm very similar to xPower for computing Weighted Average Power.   Find out more here. 

There will be differences between the Weighted Average Power and Normalized Power. How much and which direction will depend on the ride. Typically, for shorter rides, Weighted Average Power will be lower than Normalized Power.

This is a result of the different types of smoothing used by the algorithms. Both numbers have been used successfully by professional coaches.

Another thing to keep in mind is that on Strava we do not remove any sections of zero power from your data before we do our calculations.  Whether or not your Garmin power calculations are including sections of zero power depends on your Garmin settings.  You can check the Garmin Support site to find out how to adjust this setting if necessary.

I hope that provides some insight into this.  Please let us know if you have any further questions.

[Alexcampino]

I dont think this is the right solution. Why is Strava counting the 0W? Being penalized for stopping at the light? Doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me..

[Jan_Mantau]

Strava doesn't count 0 W when stopping, only when riding.

[JM]

My weighted avg power shows up on website main screen; but on Strava app on phone it shows avg power on main ride page. I use a power meter and consider weighted more representative of ride effort. Any way to change app on phone to show weighted avg power on main ride screen like it does on website?

[pssmith714]

I get average power on both my phone app as well as the Strava website. On Garmin Connect, I have higher average power numbers as it is weighted average.  Very frustrating that Strava is different and kind of defeats some of their analysis information. 

[gerardgonzales]

Hi Jane. I have the same problem. I understand that Strava includes “zeroes” when measuring average power. The settings on my Wahoo Bolt is set to “Do not include zeroes”. 

However, all my friends have their cycling computers set to “not include zeroes” as well, but they get the same average power on Strava and on their cycling computer.