After The First Ftp Test

It depends...

I think that a lot of folks show large improvements when first using a power meter because they're also improving their pacing skills.

You don't say what test you did to determine your FTP or what your FTP is, nor how long you've been training. This kind of stuff can affect what you're looking at for improvement.

Hi dk thank you for responding. I have been riding for some years now but only training by HR. I recently started training with power.

I did the 20 min. TT test video by BPC house of pain to determine my FTP. After doing the math it turns out that my FTP is 202.

I have been on a 6 day traing schedule.

Sat. hard group ride.
Sun long easy ride.
Mon short easy ride.
Tues LT intervals on trainer. (usually about 60mins)
Wed short easy ride.
Thurs Longer ride in the endurance to tempo zone.
Friday off.

I would really like your feedback with anything you think might help. 🙂

Looks like my FTP is pretty low compared to others.

The difference between training by heart rate and power is this:

In training at constant heart rate your power decreases during your session. In training at constant power your heart rate increases during your session.

It is important to train both long and hard. Your brief comments about your training are not helpful.

If training by heart rate was helpful, you want to set your power levels high enough and your intervals long enough to get your heart rate in the proper range. So in your 20 minute test at constant power, you want to get close to your peak heart rate near the end.

If you are doing short intervals, you want to hit your lactate threshold near the end of each hard effort. You can set the length of the hard effort, the length of your recovery , and your power output to achieve that.

If you are doing longer efforts, it is hard to do much except look at your effort (power numbers) for the time period and set goals for that measure. With some experience you can set reasonable goals.

Your hard group ride may be your most productive ride.

AverageGuy said:

I just started training with power a few weeks ago after completing my first FTP test. My question is...
Is there A % of my present FTP I should try to increase by?
I'd hate to start the next test thinking "well gosh...I'll just try and go a little harder."

A couple of comments. First, your FTP doesn't increase because you test it frequently. It increases because you spend a lot of minutes at L4 intensity (91%FTP+). You can do this on long rides or short rides in segments of at least 10 minutes. If you did your FTP test with a 20min test, then I assume you had an average power of about 212W (*0.95 = ~202W). If you are going to do 20min efforts, you will increase your FTP if you ride them at 90%+ of your max 20min power. IOW, you can ride them at about 190W or greater.

As to when to increase your FTP estimate, you can go by how your 20min efforts feel. When they feel too easy at 190W, then increase your power by 5-10W. In fact, I sometimes ride for months without re-testing my FTP, yet I know I am increasing my FTP because my efforts at all durations get easier and I just increase my power to what feels about like 90% of my max sustainable power for a given duration.

Finally, as to how quickly you can increase your FTP and what your potential is, nobody can tell you that because it's a function of your genetics and your self-discipline. I can give you one data point. A few years back a guy in his 50s who had never ridden before joined my cycling club. When we first rode together, he didn't even know what gear he should be in. I took him out to a favorite climb and we figured out what his sustainable power was at that point in time. It was about 200W, about the same as you. I suggested that he do the climb at least 3x per week, then group rides on the weekends. I told him to simply increase his power by about 5W whenever it felt too easy at whatever his target power was at that point in time. That was in September. He was very disciplined and rode the hill 3-4 times per week, plus weekend group rides. By Christmas, he was riding the hill at 300W. Not that you will progress as fast as he did, but that it is possible and without a huge number of hours.

Thanks guys for your feedback. Your responses reflect what I had suspected.