Am I ready for FTP test?

Kkaufer

 Good morning -- so before I bug the coaches whether it's ok to hack next week's OS plan and do an FTP test, I thought I'd tap into the collective wisdom of the Haus to see if I'm ready:

* PM is installed on bike. I know how to wake it up.  I know how to calibrate it pre-ride. 

* I've adjusted display fields on my edge 500 to account for power, and I know how to make further changes depending on what I need to see. Right now I have lap, time, 3s power, 10s power and IF and HR.

* Once I have FTP, I know how to load into garmin connect and then transfer to edge 500.

* I have watched all three parts of the power webinar once.  I will watch them again to make sure I remember the various definitions, but I get the big picture.

* I have read the first few chapters of Coggan's book, which were surprisingly easy to understand for a non-scientist.  Well, until you get to the data analysis part, which gets a bit tricky, but I'm not there yet.

* I've been reading various threads in the power forum to see what peoples power-related concerns are and to learn how to 'think' about power.

* So far, I just use garmin connect.  Not sure I have quite the headspace to go beyond that for data storage and analysis.

Sooo, is there anything I'm missing, or can I beg the Coaches to be allowed to test for FTP?  Oh, and for reference: During the 30/30s this past week, my average power was about 280.  During the z4 intervals yesterday, it was about 155 or 160.  What conclusions can I draw from that for the 5min v02 and 20min ftp tests?

thank you.

Joseph Lombardi

 You are way good to go!....don't draw any conclusions from your 30:30's ...just test...so did you start NovOS?  ...so just substitute test week protocol (week#1) for next week...then go back to the normal week (which will be week#5 I think)...

I just got on power last year....my advice would be...don't over think it....especially early on...just gather data for awhile (month)...pay attention to the numbers workout to workout/within workout...and see how they change...based on cadence, gear etc...learn the different parameters..like VI and NP.....and if riding outside...practice learning to ride at steady power...this is big....I still am not getting this...but when it comes time for race execution....the ability to ride steady is big.....

 

The only other thing I would highly recommend is using TrainingPeaks to log your workouts (you can download from Garmin to your computer and then upload into Training Peaks...(training peaks gives you WKO which allows you to look at your power more effectively than Garmin Connect...it will be much more meaningful as you go forward.)

Good Luck! 

Al Truscott

+ 1 on JL's comments

Ignore your 280 on the 30/30s - probably reflects the natural spike in power that happens when you firsrt accelerate from a slow to a fast speed. Your VO2 for purposes of training is 120% of your FTP.

You can ask the coaches if you want. but I suggest you TELL them what you are going to do, and ASK them if they have any comment, rather than asking for permission. That's seems more in keeping with your general approach towards things. Don't want them to think you're more timid than you actually are.

Kkaufer

 Thanks for the feedback guys. I forgot to mention that yes, I started November OS and just wrapped up week 3. And fwiw, I'm doing all OS rides indoors on trainer.

Gordon Cherwoniak

I'dsay go for it as well, just ask the coaches how to work in the FTP test.  As for the test the z4 intervals will give you an idea of your FTP but read the thread on the new FTP test in this forum. 

For me when I did my first test I used my HR as a main indicator is it was my first ride with power.  You have some numbers 155-160 that you know you can hold.  Just remember you have to take 95% of the test value so if during the 20' test if you break it down to  5' blocks you need to average155,160,165,170 you will come in around 154-155.

Gordon 

russG

Hey Kate - that's great!  Congrats on getting it all hooked up!  

Yes - test!  Get a baseline!  Take Monday off per plan (roll, stretch, get a little extra sleep, stay hydrated, eat healthfully), then test on Tuesday.  

On "don't over-think it": Do the EN 5m / 20m test.  Put your heart into the 5m because otherwise your 20m will be too high.  Then pace your 20m using a starting-point based on your z4 experience - let's say 155.  5m in, either stay where you are or take it up 5w based on your best guess on whether you will be able to sustain for another 15m.  10m in, either stay where you are or take it up 5w based on your best guess on whether you will be able to sustain...   15m in, either stay where you are or take it up 5w based on your best guess on whether you can sustain.  You've done it right if you don't have a drop in wattage near the end (e.g. able to sustain) but you couldn't have gone harder for the duration.

 

Calculate your FTP using the EN formula - 95% of your average power over the 20m interval, which should be reasonably steady.  Then open up the data-tool and let it calculate your zones for you.

 

The zones calculated from the EN tests and the meter in front of you will give you everything you need to dial in your training intensities, measure your progress, dial in your race power (important), manage your variability (also important for racing).

 

You can read Coggan about TSS and average-power and normalized-power and the wonder-twin-power and if it engages you then read on, but it's more than you need.  You don't need to read it if you don't want to because you already have EN to do that work for you.  Two years in I haven't made it very far into Coggan's book, for a few reasons.  It turns out, I'm better off spending my time either doing things I need to do for home, for family, for work, or alternatively, training!  If I'm reading, I'm either reading for work or I'm reading the books my kids are reading so we can talk about them.  Of course, if you find power calculations more engaging than I do, go for it!

 

As far as analysis goes, everyone has different answers on this.  I have mine.  I will now share it.  I track only as far as I need to for the analysis I do, and I analyze results in a few ways for a few reasons:

- I look to see whether I fulfilled the training objective as described in the plan, to know whether I'm really doing the plan.  This is more important for outdoor rides, which are inherently more variable than indoor rides.  

- I look at my test results over time to monitor how I'm progressing and know whether the plan I'm on is taking me forward.  

- In race-prep, I use it to train myself to ride without spikes, so that I learn to get the best average speed for whatever power I can sustain.

- I look closely at my race files to see whether I adhered to plan, assess how steady I was, assess how close I came to target, and generally learn from my experience.  

That's about it, and  Garmin connect makes it easy to do all this.

 

If you want to do more - and it is certainly possible to do more - that's when you need either Training Peaks or WKO or, if you're on a mac, Golden Cheetah.  Golden Cheetah makes it easy to track time-in-zone, power-vs-cadence, power-vs-HR, and the charts are fun to look at.  For me, every hour I spend analyzing is an hour not spent training, so I keep it in Connect and I assess whether I'm following the plan and then I assess whether I'm seeing the intended growth in my test results.  

 

That's about it.  I hope this is useful (vs. one more set of thoughts on an already crowded topic).

 

Above all, have fun with it!

Joe Matchette

xWhatever on Just go ahead and test. The 5/10/20 test is easy to incorporate into your OS week, and there really is no recovery cost. That means you can just drop it in, do it, and then continue on your week as written.

And if you have an epic fail on the 20' portion -- Do. Not. Sweat. It. It happens....and you learn from it and move on.

cgres123

DO it. It's a holiday Thursday so test on Tue/Wed do a light run/bike Friday and your back in the saddle by Saturday.