Great video, and inspiring! When Si and the other commentators speak casually about holding 300 watts up a hill it makes us weekend warriors feel like utter wimps. An FTP result closer to 200 deserves a "Fanfare for the Common Man" overdub!
I've been waiting for this one! Really looking forward to seeing how training and progress goes, would live updates on improvement and what training Jon is doing week to week. Maybe a regular diary show on this? (please)! Well done Jon!
In most people's opinion, if he's still grinning and watching the screen at the end of the test, he didn't go hard enough! But awesome effort John, you'll definitely get over 250w soon!
Only started riding in August. Just completed the TrainerRoad Sweet Spot Mid-Volume 1 training block and took my second FTP test to see how much I improved. FTP jumped from 183 to 225!
My 20 minute FTP tip - use average power on your Garmin/whatever and split it up into 4 5min laps. 0-5 minutes: 5 watts below previous result. 5-10 mins - 2 watts below previous result. 10-15 mins - 2 watts above previous result. This means that if you can ride the last 5 minutes at more than 5 watts over your previous best, you'll have beaten it. If you control your effort in this way, you might be surprised how much you can put out in the last quarter of the test.
I did an FTP test on zwift on Sunday. It was brutal! Had to take 2 rest days to recover from it but managed to improve 25W from the last test that I did on December 1st.
Did mine at simulated altitude of 2850M just for kicks came out as 228W. Gonna try a "sea level" test next soon to see how the numbers overlap. P.S. loving the GCN Assos bib shorts
I only know the estimated FTP-Power from Strava. Do you know if this is ledgit? And i use a Stages Powermeter. But what about the cycleops Smarttrainer? Does he have a Powermeter or is its just guessing the power?
estimated isnt accurate. it can be helpful to gauge fitness but as i learnt the hard way until you do the FTP test you dont truly know. Cycleops SM has a built in PM... lucky sods :)
From my perspective the warm-up is so key. When I did my first FTP test I did not warm up nearly enough. At first I could not figure out why the results were so poor - then later that week I averaged a higher power on the last 20 minutes of a 20mile training ride than I had in my FTP test! Could be some other factors at play as well, but I think the main difference was how loose and warmed up I was. If you want a good result get a good warm-up in.
Informative yet hilarious. More stuff like this! It's just more fun watching when I see you guys having fun with each other as well. You're really one of my favourit channels. So keep teasing and pushing each other.
Like many on here this video is most anticipated and long awaited! Well done john and you've a great attitude-"you should look forward to them". My top tip would be to not eat a gel just beforehand, although the plus side is that torq gels taste great both ways
Now, on the latest version of TrainerRoad, you can just ask it to estimate it for you based on your previous rides and AI. It's been pretty accurate so far IMHO. Brilliant! ;)
The target trick is really good. I did my first one a couple of weeks ago and I don't think I gave quite enough and could have maybe gotten an extra 10-15 watts. Next time, having a goal is probably going to help dig deeper.
I did an hour test on a Sci Fit Pro 2 which uses legs AND arms. This gives an advantage so is not necessarily accurate on a bicycle. 275 watts for the entire hour on a leg and arm bike at 70 rpm (your most efficient cadence will be lower with both pairs of limbs). I was drenched in sweat and time was slowing down. There is that warm up spot though as I did the last 2 minutes of the hour at 350 watts. There is a good reason why the tests are only 20 min. My best 20 min was measured at 295 watts on a gym bike display (no idea how accurate) the Sci Fit Pro 2 costs several thousand so I'm hoping power numbers are up to snuff. The gym bike was probably cheaper. I'm probably less fit now as 300 feels hard to sustain but 250 is do-able. No, you can't sustain conversation, you can maybe get one word out every breath.
I started using trainerroad in November and my first test was 194w. My latest test a few weeks ago is up to 248w so a massive improvement of over 20% in only a few months mainly due to the trainerroad workouts. I would like to have it up around 300w by the time the Etape comes round!
Hi gcn it would be really cool if you did a video where you give us a tour of all your studios like the maintenance room and gcn show room as an example
so a fan is a must for indoor training? i always do indoor training without a fan, i think it made me more use to the heat while riding outside in summer time
Thanks for the video. I'm a leisure rider (typical MAMIL really) without power meters on my bike. However, my local gym has just bought some Watt Bikes so I was tempted to give it a go. I think that your video has persuaded me! (I can guarantee that I will not be playing FTP top trumps though).
Mike Ainsworth that's what I did. I found a hotspot and bring my laptop in and ride Zwift. My gyms Timex Blue Carbon is ant+ so I got my USB ant+ stick and I'm golden. Bluetooth and iPad is an option now
FTP can increase pretty dramatically once you become focused on it. My FTP was 209 4 weeks ago when I first measured it and now its 247. Admittedly I was definitely not cycling fresh when I did my first test and had cycled for 40 minutes to get to the base of the mountain I done the test on.
The problem i have with doing the FTP test is that improvements in FTP might not be because of hight fitness but is instead getting more efficient at doing the test.
Nice to know John is normal and doesn't have X-men like mutant cycling powers like Simon, Dan, and Matt. I look forward to watching his progression to the Haute Route. We have about the same ftp. If he can do that maybe I can to
Man, John CAN keep his chocolate voice even after an FTP test! Amazing! Question: what cadence is appropriate? It looked like John kept a lower-ish cadence?
Lol, massive sandbagging by John there. He is able to talk at the end of the test. I did my first ever ftp test yesterday, and wasn't able to talk for 1 min after that even though u didn't go full deep.
There's no way these are putting out lower sustained powers than me when they're doing it all the time. I mean 200 watts is enough to give me a workout (a decent club ride pace) but I don't feel like I'm about to burst.
Ive been riding with power for 5 years, and regular FTP testing. In my opinion it doesn't really change too much, just get better at testing and gauging pace for 20 mins. Key is to keep eye on average power for the whole interval..and he wasn't going anywhere near hard enough at the end, definitely shouldn't be able to talk with 3 mins to go !
1. If I do the test indoor on turbo trainer, does the difficulty level of the trainer affect FTP result? If yes, how would I know what level I should choose to conduct my FTP test? 2. Will the result of FTP test done indoor be different from the result of FTP test done outdoor?
brave of john to do a FTP on video and let the world see.. Last time I did one, was the last one I ever did. It was much too painful and I felt aweful at the end. John needed to go harder and show his pain face like lasty
Good video. Simon might've added that your FTP on a trainer will tend to be lower than the one measured outside. (Also, that if you do the test on aerobars, you may score lower than if you keep your hands on the handlebars.) Then again, it's a basic video.
Hi Champ. Is it best to do the ftp test on a hill or flats ? Got my PM fitted now ... thanx The hills where I stay are far and what is close are rolling terrain and some 8min hills only
There is a lot of information out there on how to work out your FTP, but a lot less on how to use it to train. What's a good starting place for working out a training plan once I know my FTP?
Trying to maintain some kind of bike-fitness during a (fairly cold and snowy) Bavarian winter. I have an old (v noisy, magnetic) Turbo-Trainer. Can anyone suggest a reasonably priced, quieter model for training in a flat, while watching GCN Training Vids? Many thanks in advance.
You should record your HR too so that you measure your FTHR as well as FTP. I don't have a power meter on my outdoor bikes, but I always have a HR strap.
Can i do an FTP test outdoors? I don't have an indoor trainer but i do have rollers. I'm thinking the only reason for an FTP test indoor is to remove all the variable from outdoor to get a much more accurate reading but wouldn't it be better to actually run outdoors for real time, and active stats?
Do you have any specific advice for training with Virtual Power on TrainerRoad? I'm using a simple turbo trainer with Bluetooth speed and cadence sensors.
I used Virtual Power for a little while, and wasn't too happy with it. It's just too imprecise. In theory, it should work, as long as every single variable is the same from workout-to-workout. The power number you get using Virtual Power is in no way tied to "actual" power, so you can't compare it to other people. However, for Virtual Power to be useful, you need to have the exact same setup every time. Same tension from trainer-to-tire. Same tire pressure. If those aren't the same from workout to workout, your power numbers will not be accurate.
Hi GCN when I am on my turbo trainer and on zwift I can go faster and with more power than on the road? Is this because I can't put power out on the road? And does zwift up your speed a bit?
Very useful video as Always. I have a question though, i have an indoor bike (tunturi E30) and i Can set it so that i'm pushing a certain amount of watts. So if i set the bike on 300watts, and i keep pushing for 20min, Can i assume that my FTP is about 285w? Or is my testing method flawed? I'm not sure yet how to get an average watts Reading so i tried the method i explained but the numbers i am getting seem a bit high since i am 66kg, never train, and still am a smoker (not for long anymore tho) Thx
That wouldn't work. You would need to reach and maintain a specific cadence, but it would be very difficult and probably not too accurate even then. You need a proper power meter.
I can just about gasp the words, "F***ing Hell....F***ing Hell....F***ing Hell...." after a 20 min FTP test. I can't actually do anything for about 10 minutes after. I would say that minutes 11 to 17 are the hardest, longest, desperately painful, 6 minutes of my life. I'm never sure I'm going to make it until I get to 3 minutes to go then I'm OK and can dig in for the home stretch. If you can "sprint" for the final 60 seconds then you probably got it wrong by a few Watts on average. Fantastic feeling when its over though.
You say that it's wrong to do long FTP test. I've seen the two FTP test on Zwift and they are both long. 45 min and more than 60 min. Do you think they are not affordable?
They weren't talking about the length of the overall workout, but the length of the testing portion. In the video, it is a 60-minute workout, but the "tested" portion is that 20-minute section in the second half of the workout. The FTP is determined by taking 95% of the average power of that 20-minute section. TrainerRoad also offers a 60-minute workout that includes two 8-minute tests. The FTP from that assessment is calculated by taking 90% of the average power for those 8-minute segments. Everything else in the workout is warmup, cooldown, and some glycogen-burning efforts that don't actually count towards your FTP. During the video, they were just talking about the difference between doing the 20-minute assessment vs the 2x8-minute assessment, depending on the type of riding you intend to do. The 90% and 95% calculations are estimates to give you an approximate 60-minute power without having to do a full 60-minute test. In Zwift, they offer an full 60-minute test as well as a 20-minute test (similar to TrainerRoad). The 60-minute test uses the average power during that full test, and the 20-minute test uses the same 95% calculation that TrainerRoad uses.
#TorqueBack Naive question: How did you measure FTP without actually measuring blood lactate? (Isn't the ratio of maximum sustainable power (eg MMP20 or MMP60) to FTP is in a physiological range wherein individual ratios differ considerably? What is more, wouldn't the fact that Mr Beavan suffered quite a bit at the end that he was indeed quite considerably above the lactic threshold?)
FTP is not the lactate threshold, its just defined as the average power sustainable over an hour. Of course, it's going to be somewhat related to the power at lactate threshold (if such a thing really is useful is a long winded topic).
