Thanks for the feedback. Just went and checked the roller tension and I was able pull the tire fairly easily while holding the roller. I tightened the tension so it still slides but only with a pretty big tug (more than causes a pretty big depression in my tire). I realize that speed/distance on the trainer is pretty irrelevant but was hoping to at least be able to look at it some kind of apples to apples basis.
As for Becky's cadence question, I don't know i've never had a cadence sensor until a few days ago (just rode by feel) . . . and to think I was asking about power! What a goofball. Anyway, yes I'd say it felt like a pretty standard cadence for me and pretty comparable to what I'd ride outside. To Greg's point, I think it may have something to do with never being a big bike miles guy and it's the best way for me to ride without "burning out" my legs.
AWESOME! Good work everyone. Loving the mojo coming in today!
Regarding cadence, this comes up every year. Greg's response is right on and what EN preaches overall. That is. . . .we all fall into whatever cadence is comfortable for each of us. If you look at Chris Lieto he has a very high cadence and Macca has a much lower cadence.
Personally, the higher my FT the higher my cadence. I am usually in the 96+ range. Today's test had me at 93. I find that if I try to WORK at a lower cadence (not my comfort zone) my legs fry faster and I also understand if you mash at a lower cadence trying to build strength (not your comfort zone) people tend to get knee issues. Again, it is a personal thing.
And for right now, I would suggest not sweating the small stuff like cadence. Get through the next few weeks of OS, build the FT and vDot and if you wanna start tweaking (and have the energy to do so) then do it at that time. Just my .02.
Turns out I was probably overly conservative, since I know that the ideal profile is exactly the same number all the way through, and then fall off the bike in total exhaustion 1 second after the test ends...based on that criteria, I didn't really get all of it...but probably close enough for a first go.
42 minute test...2 x 20 minute broken into 5 minute sections as follows:
First 20 minutes: 237W, 235W...picked it up here since it felt too light...247W...and then picked it up again...256W
Second 20 minutes: 258W, 257W, 260W, 267W...pushing _really_ hard in the last 5 minutes to just focus on maintaining 90RPM which I knew was giving me over 260 Watts in my final gearing...max Heart Rate 156...which is where I've had it in the past
Overall, Norm Power, including the 2 minute rest section was 249 Watts. The good news was that I finished strong...the only bad news was that I was too conservative at the start, and therefore could have hit an even higher number.
Knowing what I know now, I'd start in that 245-250 Range, and then ramp it up about the same, so if I remained intact, and had a more perfect ride, would have probably given me closer to a 255-260W'ish FTP...at least that's what I'll dream until I actually post the number
FTP test done, still trying to lift my jaw from the ground cause I can't believe my results- but in a positive way!
haven't been doing much riding at all since lake placid, then did the bike relay in October for a 1/2 IM . then wound up in a boot for 5 weeks. even for preOS, not focused at all. I have been working out- doing weight training and working on try to be able to run/physical therapy.
I really thought i would only be in the 130s ( Last year I was 135) during the warm up, 130s really didn't seem so bad,
Oh, I did the test inside on my computrainer. I do have a PT, but I am using my road bike for now, need to change that from 9sp to 10 sp so I can switch out wheels. I did it on a flat course
My new FTP is 155!
Here is the summary
Entire workout (154 watts):
Duration: 41:57 ( hmm, I know I waited til after 42;00)
Work: 386 kJ
TSS: 91 (intensity factor 1.147)
Norm Power:155
VI: 1.01
Pw:HR: 4.56%
Pa:HR: 4.18%
Distance: 12.965 mi
MinMaxAvg
Power: 94193154 watts
Heart Rate: 126169164 bpm
Cadence: 598775 rpm
Speed: 15.519.918.5 mph
Pace 3:013:533:14 min/mi
Crank Torque:126256172 lb-in
I can't imagine where I will go with consistent training this year. No more injuries for me. My big focus is working on body comp and injury prevention. Last year I was very inconsistent
I need help interpreting my bike test. Last year I blew off all bike testing in favor of my own thing. I did the HR test today. After 15 mins WU w 3x30sec and 3x1min, I started the 40 min test with a HR of 96 and finished with 156...so a 126 avg. For the hour my Garmin gave me a 125 avg. I think my test was actually lower since I was only at 143 w 3 mins to go, but picked up the pace to get a spike. So here are my questions: 1) Why is the HR test 40 mins straight and the power test 2 x 20mins? 2) Should I be using 2 watches and only use the Garmin for the actual test part? 3) What constitutes improvement on the HR test in 4 wks...a lower HR at the same RPE, or the ability to drive a higher heart rate. By the way, my old heart will explode over 165 bpm. I tell myself that I don't need a high HR because it's so powerful!
BTW, that was damn hard and I learned that I shouldn't eat dinner at 7:30pm and jump on the bike at 8pm. Ugh
@Michael, 30% is definitely high, but not ridiculous if you think you're at a low spot in fitness right now. I tested out to 210, and am targeting the same goal, so I'm looking forward to throwing down with you!
Good to see Summit NJ pop up. I used to live in Springfield, and my wife worked in Summit for a time. Fond memories.
Posted By Steve Kwiatkowski on 03 Jan 2011 08:17 PM
First FTP test in the EN Haus: 249W
Turns out I was probably overly conservative, since I know that the ideal profile is exactly the same number all the way through, and then fall off the bike in total exhaustion 1 second after the test ends...based on that criteria, I didn't really get all of it...but probably close enough for a first go.
42 minute test...2 x 20 minute broken into 5 minute sections as follows:
First 20 minutes: 237W, 235W...picked it up here since it felt too light...247W...and then picked it up again...256W
Second 20 minutes: 258W, 257W, 260W, 267W...pushing _really_ hard in the last 5 minutes to just focus on maintaining 90RPM which I knew was giving me over 260 Watts in my final gearing...max Heart Rate 156...which is where I've had it in the past
Overall, Norm Power, including the 2 minute rest section was 249 Watts. The good news was that I finished strong...the only bad news was that I was too conservative at the start, and therefore could have hit an even higher number.
Knowing what I know now, I'd start in that 245-250 Range, and then ramp it up about the same, so if I remained intact, and had a more perfect ride, would have probably given me closer to a 255-260W'ish FTP...at least that's what I'll dream until I actually post the number
Steve,
The "rest" section of the 42 minute 2x20 test is still spinning lightly at 65-70%, not off completely. With those numbers my guess is that you took those two minutes off; your FTP got artificially lowered. Am I wrong?
I woke up at 4:30 this morning to get my bike test in before going off to work. It was a hard task and managed to finish feeling completely empty, but like I had accomplished something. My Garmin appeared to be working correctly; HOWEVER, when I went to excitedly upload my data tonight it was no where to be found! !?!!??
I do recall looking at my watch numerous times throughout the test...My avg speed was 13.0 and I know I maintained my HR between 149 and 155 the entire 40 minutes, distance was 10.5
Should I just use the average HR of 152 - it is a mere estimate, but should okay, right?
Indoor test on the trainer. I was well-tapered having not ridden since Tuesday 12/28, although the holiday eating and drinking does not exactly have me in the best condition overall. Plus I have a cold.
Since I've never trained with power before I didn't have power on the computer screen for the test, since I might have been tempted to target some numbers I've read on-line. So I just tried to go hard, keep my cadence in the 85-90 range and try to keep my "mph" (note: "trainer mph") in the 22.5 ballpark range since I know I can keep about 22mph for a pretty darn hard 60' ride on this trainer.
Assuming I'm using WKO correctly, the results (in 5' segments...love that) are:
First 20': 200, 208, 216, 220
Second 20': 205, 211, 217, 221
So clearly my pacing needs a little work, although that clock was moving slowly at the end. I think the proof that I really toasted myself was that I had to cut 2' off the cooldown due to a brutal cramping of my right calf that came out of nowhere and has never happened before...yikes.
Overall Norm Power for the 42' range was 211, which I believe is the FTP, right? If so, that means ~3.4 w/kg. I don't have a specific goal in mind, but I look forward to improving on this test during the OS.
2' recovery interval: it shows n/a for norm power...I don't know why that is -- clearly I'm still learning WKO and power analytics. My Garmin gives me average power of 146 for this lap. Interestingly my Garmin also gives me 210 for the weighted average of average power for the 3 laps that comprised the test. And I don't need an hour to figure out how to calculate that...just sayin...
I also used an HR monitor for the first time ever and it seemed to camp out at about 177-178 during the main 20' sets, although it took a good 15' AFTER the warmup to get up to that level. Perhaps I didn't warm up sufficiently, and that might also explain why the first couple of 5' power numbers were low.
Bucked up and got it done last night. Some rookie mistakes on my part that I'm embarrassed about, but I don't think it really mattered as I was groaning at the end of each interval, to me, that's almost like having a gun pointed at my head! My goal was to hit 230w so of course I set out to maintain that. I ended up with 227 for the first, but dropped to 220 for the second. I'm sure my rest interval didn't help, that was probably around 100!!! I honestly thought I was going to puke. Mistake one, took it out too hard, if I had been drinking, I could've used the beer muscle excuse. The second, I was just trying to hang on. and the kicker was I thought I could cheat a bit and sit up for some of the second, found out I could maintain better watts down in the aero. Only if I was pushing a big gear could I get bigger numbers sitting up. All I know is that I think 221 for my FTP seems on par no matter how I got there. I think something like 2.53 w/kg. A long way to go. Second mistake, I was hungry at dinner, and since I didn't do my test until 8:30 last night, my dinner was sitting in my stomach like lead, especially during the second effort. I'm much better with an emptier stomach. Again, I don't think my numbers would have been much different. The next test will be better, and that's all that matters!!
Too much cake 206 which considering I have done nothing other than eat and eat for the last month I should be pretty happy with.
Haven't stepped on the scales but assume I have 10-15#'s easy to lose to get back to a respectable weight. Fun test actually all things considered. Haven't really riden in anger since mid august (cross racing while totally difficult doesn't really count). Crank the music and get it done
The 40 mins versus 2x20 w 2 mins? I dunno. The test is designed to establish the highest "zone' we can sustain for that amount of time. Really it's supposed to simulate an hour time trial so I'm a little unclear as to why it's not simply the hardest hour we can muster. Anyway....for training hr zones it's to find that spot, that you can hit it and hold it for 40 and going forward work from that place in your training intervals. But you know this. The problem I have with your results (or anyone else's using hr) is that unless you're REALLY warmed up you start quite low and there's a lag time until you're at your 40 minute cruising threshhold. It sounds like if you blow up at 160 something, your functional threshhold will be in the 150's? 126 isn't going to get you much work as a 100% number. If there's a way to look at your test hr numbers and see where you got into that work zone where it's hard but holdable, just under blow up- that's your number.
I've used hr recently (up until I tested yesterday) because how could I work from watts without knowing what my real ft is? And so hr is much more realiable as I know through experience, perceived exertion and watching it climb...stall....then climb again where my top work zone is. Now that I have a reliable watt number to work from, I'll use that.
This is off the kool aid but if I were using just hr, I would warm up then do a hard 5 minute effort that raises it WAY up, not just, okay I'm breathing hard so I'm ready, but really pushes your max- you know what that is and what it feels like. And then I would recover briefly, not all the way down in hr and then go as hard as you can for 20 minutes. This way, your hr jumps quickly back into the work zone and your working number is not skewed lower. If you've ever watched the pros warm up for a tt, they're jacking the hr way up so that it's really ready to work, not just cuddly warm.
I believe that as your strength/fitness comes around through the OS your hr work zone number will go higher, but this is where the physiology gets tricky which leads us back to watts as a measurement.
Well, the wind just wouldn't die down yesterday. So I decided to do the test on the trainer in the morning instead (I'm not doing the run test, so there's no issue with recovery). I haven't been on the trainer in......oh........maybe 9 or 10 months? And I haven't done any intervals longer than 10 minutes since this summer. So I knew it wouldn't be pretty. But I challenged myself to turn this thing around mentally. I knew the FTP wouldn't be what I "wanted" it to be, and I also knew if I tried for that number I'd only fail and screw my head further.
So- my mantra for the test was to have an honest and smart test. I paced myself conservatively and tried to build every 5 minutes within each 20. I also broke up the test by changing positions from the hoods to the drops every 5 minutes. Here's the results.
FTP=135
5 min Breakdowns:
1st 20: 128, 130, 136, 141
2nd 20: 126, 133, 131, 147
I may not like this number, it's about 5 lower than I thought it would be (10 lower than my estimated outside FTP) but after all it's just a number! It was a successful test and I have gotten over that first mental hump of the OS! No where to go but up from here. Bring it on!
Was shooting for 190 and just barely scraped by with a 180 after faaaaaaaaaaaaaading down the back stretch something fierce. Oops. Time to step away from the couch and get to work.
Misery loves company! Keith (my DH) was doing his first FT test since his accident. I had done mine a few weeks ago so felt no need to repeat. BUT...you know how it is...once I started and knew he was testing I just went with it too. If nothing else, 2x20 is one great workout! And he appreciated the company. Got a 2 watt bump to 165. I'll take it. Felt too good at the end of this test. It's clear I could have pushed harder. There will be a next time!
Re the rest interval, if you read the wiki, the instructions are 2' rest/easy riding. For the FT test, we've always gone with the instruction to pedal as you need to recover to get ready to go again. Bill, the 65% instruction for the interval is what we need to do in the VO2 max "rest" for the 2.5/2.5 block. That challenge is yet to be summitted this year!
I FINALLY had a chance to read the last several posts of tests, and I gotta say, YOU GUYS ROCK!!! First, I'm so relieved to see many others in a similar boat (Chris M- "Golf and Cookies do not an FT make" cracked me up). I feel a lot better about my starting point knowing many of you are much lower than you'd expected as well.
Second. The Power Noobs are seriously rocking their first tests!!! The pacing on their tests is FAR better than most first timers (myself included). This is one hell of a group!
Finally- the banter among Dave, John, Chris, etc is gonna keep me smiling all day!
@Dana- yeah, I'd say you can use your estimate HR for now. I'd bet it's pretty dang close anyway.
@Paul - the way I tested with my Garmin last year was to start a new interval after all the warm up stuff; I also waited to start my bike computer until after the warmup (or simply zeroed it out) - so I could get an accurate HR avg, distance, etc for the 40' test - to plug those numbers into the data tool. Not sure how you got 126 - the avg isn't necessarily the midway point from the time you started and when it ended... in all likelihood you spent a heckuva lot more time above 96... I hate hate hate to suggest you consider retesting but you might want to. Perhaps ride the zones that resulted from the test and see what happens. If they're too easy, I'd say retest... or, option B: if this year is like last year, HR athletes don't test on the bike often (we do the killer 2x20s workouts, but don't enter the data into the tool, etc)... so if you don't want to test again this week - perhaps ride in the zones that resulted from yesterday's test and test again at the next FTP test day, isolating the date for your 40' work segment.. Hope this helps... and doesn't confuse matters any.
x2 what Dave Boyle said. Too much cake, Belgian beers...and crepes for me. These tests are a blast after not doing anything for several months and putting on 15-20lbs. 241w. Can't wait for the 5K!
Posted By Steve Kwiatkowski on 04 Jan 2011 07:55 AM
@ Bill, I was still lightly spinning for the 2 minutes between:
Average from WKO:116W, cadence 79RPM, so maybe too light?
@Steve - the guidance from the past is to ride at ~ .60 IF (60%) for the 2 minutes section. That is, if you can.
John, I don't think that's entirely true. I think sometimes we get mixed up with the interval guidance for the VO2 block, which is 60%. This is from the wiki.
2' rest/easy riding.
For the FT test, we've always gone with the instruction to pedal as you need to recover to get ready to go again,as far as I recall. We need to clear this up, b/c it makes a BIG difference. Big Coach P to the courtesy phone!!!!
So, you did 2 2x20's in a weeks time? I guess you are going rogue. You'll be laughing at Thurs 2x8's.
Dave
LOL! I'm not running, remember? That gives me LOTS more leeway on the bike and not crumbling into a heap within two weeks.
Keith has a way to climb. He's just started trying to climb the mountain again. He came in today at 202, down from 242. But considering he's not paralyzed, or brain dead, and is ALIVE, he's good with it.
That's great news about Keith Linda! He's gonna be killing it on the roads again in no time. So happy for him!
I seem to recall Coach P taking an actual pee break during his video'd FTP Test (he didn't video the peeing part, but it was obvious he walked away for something!)
I seem to recall Coach P taking an actual pee break during his video'd FTP Test (he didn't video the peeing part, but it was obvious he walked away for something!)
Power Noob’s First Official FTP test is in the books! Feels so good to be around like-minded folks who totally geek out to these numbers as well…
FWIW I did do a couple of tests in the pre-OS just to make sure I had the admin and pacing down. Very nice to see the last two tests were an identical result (better pacing in the second) so I know I have a really solid number to build on. Might not be as rested as I should be though, so I’m excited to do some real work and re-test in a few weeks.
@ Chris Malone - thanks for the input. The HR test means nothing to me...no value other than a great work-out. This is why I race and train strictly on RPE (with good results I might add). Hard work is hard work and I know when I'm doing it. I'll do the HR test again but only for the gee-whiz factor and a change-up from my Spinervals tapes. There's no way I'm going to use HR in a race.
Comments
Michael, goals are great to have in the EN haus anything is possible. Awesome VDOT too!!!!!! Cheers, Greg
@Becky, David and Greg:
Thanks for the feedback. Just went and checked the roller tension and I was able pull the tire fairly easily while holding the roller. I tightened the tension so it still slides but only with a pretty big tug (more than causes a pretty big depression in my tire). I realize that speed/distance on the trainer is pretty irrelevant but was hoping to at least be able to look at it some kind of apples to apples basis.
As for Becky's cadence question, I don't know i've never had a cadence sensor until a few days ago (just rode by feel) . . . and to think I was asking about power! What a goofball. Anyway, yes I'd say it felt like a pretty standard cadence for me and pretty comparable to what I'd ride outside. To Greg's point, I think it may have something to do with never being a big bike miles guy and it's the best way for me to ride without "burning out" my legs.
AWESOME! Good work everyone. Loving the mojo coming in today!
Regarding cadence, this comes up every year. Greg's response is right on and what EN preaches overall. That is. . . .we all fall into whatever cadence is comfortable for each of us. If you look at Chris Lieto he has a very high cadence and Macca has a much lower cadence.
Personally, the higher my FT the higher my cadence. I am usually in the 96+ range. Today's test had me at 93. I find that if I try to WORK at a lower cadence (not my comfort zone) my legs fry faster and I also understand if you mash at a lower cadence trying to build strength (not your comfort zone) people tend to get knee issues. Again, it is a personal thing.
And for right now, I would suggest not sweating the small stuff like cadence. Get through the next few weeks of OS, build the FT and vDot and if you wanna start tweaking (and have the energy to do so) then do it at that time. Just my .02.
Good work everyone.
First FTP test in the EN Haus: 249W
Turns out I was probably overly conservative, since I know that the ideal profile is exactly the same number all the way through, and then fall off the bike in total exhaustion 1 second after the test ends...based on that criteria, I didn't really get all of it...but probably close enough for a first go.
42 minute test...2 x 20 minute broken into 5 minute sections as follows:
First 20 minutes: 237W, 235W...picked it up here since it felt too light...247W...and then picked it up again...256W
Second 20 minutes: 258W, 257W, 260W, 267W...pushing _really_ hard in the last 5 minutes to just focus on maintaining 90RPM which I knew was giving me over 260 Watts in my final gearing...max Heart Rate 156...which is where I've had it in the past
Overall, Norm Power, including the 2 minute rest section was 249 Watts. The good news was that I finished strong...the only bad news was that I was too conservative at the start, and therefore could have hit an even higher number.
Knowing what I know now, I'd start in that 245-250 Range, and then ramp it up about the same, so if I remained intact, and had a more perfect ride, would have probably given me closer to a 255-260W'ish FTP...at least that's what I'll dream until I actually post the number
Hey, everyone is doing great! Great MoJo
FTP test done, still trying to lift my jaw from the ground cause I can't believe my results- but in a positive way!
haven't been doing much riding at all since lake placid, then did the bike relay in October for a 1/2 IM . then wound up in a boot for 5 weeks. even for preOS, not focused at all. I have been working out- doing weight training and working on try to be able to run/physical therapy.
I really thought i would only be in the 130s ( Last year I was 135) during the warm up, 130s really didn't seem so bad,
Oh, I did the test inside on my computrainer. I do have a PT, but I am using my road bike for now, need to change that from 9sp to 10 sp so I can switch out wheels. I did it on a flat course
My new FTP is 155!
Here is the summary
Entire workout (154 watts):
1) Why is the HR test 40 mins straight and the power test 2 x 20mins?
2) Should I be using 2 watches and only use the Garmin for the actual test part?
3) What constitutes improvement on the HR test in 4 wks...a lower HR at the same RPE, or the ability to drive a higher heart rate. By the way, my old heart will explode over 165 bpm. I tell myself that I don't need a high HR because it's so powerful!
BTW, that was damn hard and I learned that I shouldn't eat dinner at 7:30pm and jump on the bike at 8pm. Ugh
Good to see Summit NJ pop up. I used to live in Springfield, and my wife worked in Summit for a time. Fond memories.
Steve,
The "rest" section of the 42 minute 2x20 test is still spinning lightly at 65-70%, not off completely. With those numbers my guess is that you took those two minutes off; your FTP got artificially lowered. Am I wrong?
I woke up at 4:30 this morning to get my bike test in before going off to work. It was a hard task and managed to finish feeling completely empty, but like I had accomplished something. My Garmin appeared to be working correctly; HOWEVER, when I went to excitedly upload my data tonight it was no where to be found!
!?!!??
I do recall looking at my watch numerous times throughout the test...My avg speed was 13.0 and I know I maintained my HR between 149 and 155 the entire 40 minutes, distance was 10.5
Should I just use the average HR of 152 - it is a mere estimate, but should okay, right?
First ride with power and first FTP test!
Indoor test on the trainer. I was well-tapered having not ridden since Tuesday 12/28, although the holiday eating and drinking does not exactly have me in the best condition overall. Plus I have a cold.
Since I've never trained with power before I didn't have power on the computer screen for the test, since I might have been tempted to target some numbers I've read on-line. So I just tried to go hard, keep my cadence in the 85-90 range and try to keep my "mph" (note: "trainer mph") in the 22.5 ballpark range since I know I can keep about 22mph for a pretty darn hard 60' ride on this trainer.
Assuming I'm using WKO correctly, the results (in 5' segments...love that) are:
First 20': 200, 208, 216, 220
Second 20': 205, 211, 217, 221
So clearly my pacing needs a little work, although that clock was moving slowly at the end. I think the proof that I really toasted myself was that I had to cut 2' off the cooldown due to a brutal cramping of my right calf that came out of nowhere and has never happened before...yikes.
Overall Norm Power for the 42' range was 211, which I believe is the FTP, right? If so, that means ~3.4 w/kg. I don't have a specific goal in mind, but I look forward to improving on this test during the OS.
2' recovery interval: it shows n/a for norm power...I don't know why that is -- clearly I'm still learning WKO and power analytics. My Garmin gives me average power of 146 for this lap. Interestingly my Garmin also gives me 210 for the weighted average of average power for the 3 laps that comprised the test. And I don't need an hour to figure out how to calculate that...just sayin...
I also used an HR monitor for the first time ever and it seemed to camp out at about 177-178 during the main 20' sets, although it took a good 15' AFTER the warmup to get up to that level. Perhaps I didn't warm up sufficiently, and that might also explain why the first couple of 5' power numbers were low.
I don't know how to share a WKO file but here is the Garmin depiction: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/61862908.
The WKO range data is:
FTP test - 2x 20' (2'):
Duration: 42:16
Work: 531 kJ
TSS: 70.3 (intensity factor 0.999)
Norm Power: 211
VI: 1.01
Pw:HR: 8.43%
Pa:HR: 10.47%
Distance: 15.589 mi
Elevation Gain: 0 ft
Elevation Loss: 0 ft
Grade: 0.0 % (8 ft)
Min Max Avg
Power: 103 248 210 watts
Heart Rate: 134 185 168 bpm
Cadence: 80 89 85 rpm
Speed: 18.1 25 22.1 mph
Pace 2:24 3:18 2:43 min/mi
Altitude: 562 570 569 ft
Crank Torque: 107 242 207 lb-in
I look forward to the run test on Wed.
Cheers,
Matt
Bucked up and got it done last night. Some rookie mistakes on my part that I'm embarrassed about, but I don't think it really mattered as I was groaning at the end of each interval, to me, that's almost like having a gun pointed at my head! My goal was to hit 230w so of course I set out to maintain that. I ended up with 227 for the first, but dropped to 220 for the second. I'm sure my rest interval didn't help, that was probably around 100!!! I honestly thought I was going to puke. Mistake one, took it out too hard, if I had been drinking, I could've used the beer muscle excuse. The second, I was just trying to hang on. and the kicker was I thought I could cheat a bit and sit up for some of the second, found out I could maintain better watts down in the aero. Only if I was pushing a big gear could I get bigger numbers sitting up. All I know is that I think 221 for my FTP seems on par no matter how I got there. I think something like 2.53 w/kg. A long way to go. Second mistake, I was hungry at dinner, and since I didn't do my test until 8:30 last night, my dinner was sitting in my stomach like lead, especially during the second effort. I'm much better with an emptier stomach. Again, I don't think my numbers would have been much different. The next test will be better, and that's all that matters!!
Too much cake
206 which considering I have done nothing other than eat and eat for the last month I should be pretty happy with.
Haven't stepped on the scales but assume I have 10-15#'s easy to lose to get back to a respectable weight. Fun test actually all things considered. Haven't really riden in anger since mid august (cross racing while totally difficult doesn't really count). Crank the music and get it done
I think my watts -> kilogram is probably 1.
-Dave
Re: hr, fwiw.
The 40 mins versus 2x20 w 2 mins? I dunno. The test is designed to establish the highest "zone' we can sustain for that amount of time. Really it's supposed to simulate an hour time trial so I'm a little unclear as to why it's not simply the hardest hour we can muster. Anyway....for training hr zones it's to find that spot, that you can hit it and hold it for 40 and going forward work from that place in your training intervals. But you know this. The problem I have with your results (or anyone else's using hr) is that unless you're REALLY warmed up you start quite low and there's a lag time until you're at your 40 minute cruising threshhold. It sounds like if you blow up at 160 something, your functional threshhold will be in the 150's? 126 isn't going to get you much work as a 100% number. If there's a way to look at your test hr numbers and see where you got into that work zone where it's hard but holdable, just under blow up- that's your number.
I've used hr recently (up until I tested yesterday) because how could I work from watts without knowing what my real ft is? And so hr is much more realiable as I know through experience, perceived exertion and watching it climb...stall....then climb again where my top work zone is. Now that I have a reliable watt number to work from, I'll use that.
This is off the kool aid but if I were using just hr, I would warm up then do a hard 5 minute effort that raises it WAY up, not just, okay I'm breathing hard so I'm ready, but really pushes your max- you know what that is and what it feels like. And then I would recover briefly, not all the way down in hr and then go as hard as you can for 20 minutes. This way, your hr jumps quickly back into the work zone and your working number is not skewed lower. If you've ever watched the pros warm up for a tt, they're jacking the hr way up so that it's really ready to work, not just cuddly warm.
I believe that as your strength/fitness comes around through the OS your hr work zone number will go higher, but this is where the physiology gets tricky which leads us back to watts as a measurement.
@ Bill, I was still lightly spinning for the 2 minutes between:
Average from WKO:116W, cadence 79RPM, so maybe too light?
Well, the wind just wouldn't die down yesterday. So I decided to do the test on the trainer in the morning instead (I'm not doing the run test, so there's no issue with recovery). I haven't been on the trainer in......oh........maybe 9 or 10 months? And I haven't done any intervals longer than 10 minutes since this summer. So I knew it wouldn't be pretty. But I challenged myself to turn this thing around mentally. I knew the FTP wouldn't be what I "wanted" it to be, and I also knew if I tried for that number I'd only fail and screw my head further.
So- my mantra for the test was to have an honest and smart test. I paced myself conservatively and tried to build every 5 minutes within each 20. I also broke up the test by changing positions from the hoods to the drops every 5 minutes. Here's the results.
FTP=135
5 min Breakdowns:
1st 20: 128, 130, 136, 141
2nd 20: 126, 133, 131, 147
I may not like this number, it's about 5 lower than I thought it would be (10 lower than my estimated outside FTP) but after all it's just a number! It was a successful test and I have gotten over that first mental hump of the OS! No where to go but up from here. Bring it on!
Wow am I out of shape!!
Was shooting for 190 and just barely scraped by with a 180 after faaaaaaaaaaaaaading down the back stretch something fierce. Oops. Time to step away from the couch and get to work.
Nicely done everyone!
Misery loves company! Keith (my DH) was doing his first FT test since his accident. I had done mine a few weeks ago so felt no need to repeat. BUT...you know how it is...once I started and knew he was testing I just went with it too. If nothing else, 2x20 is one great workout! And he appreciated the company. Got a 2 watt bump to 165. I'll take it. Felt too good at the end of this test. It's clear I could have pushed harder. There will be a next time!
Re the rest interval, if you read the wiki, the instructions are 2' rest/easy riding. For the FT test, we've always gone with the instruction to pedal as you need to recover to get ready to go again. Bill, the 65% instruction for the interval is what we need to do in the VO2 max "rest" for the 2.5/2.5 block. That challenge is yet to be summitted this year!
I FINALLY had a chance to read the last several posts of tests, and I gotta say, YOU GUYS ROCK!!! First, I'm so relieved to see many others in a similar boat (Chris M- "Golf and Cookies do not an FT make" cracked me up). I feel a lot better about my starting point knowing many of you are much lower than you'd expected as well.
Second. The Power Noobs are seriously rocking their first tests!!! The pacing on their tests is FAR better than most first timers (myself included). This is one hell of a group!
Finally- the banter among Dave, John, Chris, etc is gonna keep me smiling all day!
@Dana- yeah, I'd say you can use your estimate HR for now. I'd bet it's pretty dang close anyway.
@Tracy:
Awesome, just awesome news!
@Paul - the way I tested with my Garmin last year was to start a new interval after all the warm up stuff; I also waited to start my bike computer until after the warmup (or simply zeroed it out) - so I could get an accurate HR avg, distance, etc for the 40' test - to plug those numbers into the data tool. Not sure how you got 126 - the avg isn't necessarily the midway point from the time you started and when it ended... in all likelihood you spent a heckuva lot more time above 96... I hate hate hate to suggest you consider retesting but you might want to. Perhaps ride the zones that resulted from the test and see what happens. If they're too easy, I'd say retest... or, option B: if this year is like last year, HR athletes don't test on the bike often (we do the killer 2x20s workouts, but don't enter the data into the tool, etc)... so if you don't want to test again this week - perhaps ride in the zones that resulted from yesterday's test and test again at the next FTP test day, isolating the date for your 40' work segment.. Hope this helps... and doesn't confuse matters any.
@Tracy - AWESOME!
Linda,
How did Keith do? I'm rooting for him, big time.
So, you did 2 2x20's in a weeks time? I guess you are going rogue.
You'll be laughing at Thurs 2x8's.
Dave
John, I don't think that's entirely true. I think sometimes we get mixed up with the interval guidance for the VO2 block, which is 60%. This is from the wiki.
2' rest/easy riding.
For the FT test, we've always gone with the instruction to pedal as you need to recover to get ready to go again,as far as I recall. We need to clear this up, b/c it makes a BIG difference. Big Coach P to the courtesy phone!!!!
LOL! I'm not running, remember? That gives me LOTS more leeway on the bike and not crumbling into a heap within two weeks.
Keith has a way to climb. He's just started trying to climb the mountain again. He came in today at 202, down from 242. But considering he's not paralyzed, or brain dead, and is ALIVE, he's good with it.
I seem to recall Coach P taking an actual pee break during his video'd FTP Test (he didn't video the peeing part, but it was obvious he walked away for something!)
He was getting another testosterone patch.
Power Noob’s First Official FTP test is in the books! Feels so good to be around like-minded folks who totally geek out to these numbers as well…
Great work, Jenn. That's a hell of a lot of testing. You must be pooped.
Dave
nice job, though.
STELLAR, actually ;-)