Came back to TR after 2 year hiatus. After 4 + weeks back FTP up by 13 watts. I’m slightly suspect.
Does anyone else here thinking they are biasing FTP upwards for new / reactivated accounts?
Obviously a FTP bump gives and a dopamine hit to continue moving with the plan
In short, no.
It depends on what data you are feeding the machine, by (presumably) feeding in turbo sessions for 4 weeks, as opposed to not, the machine is likely building a better picture of what you are capable of, along with the potential for quick gains coming back to structured training (again, an assumption but you’ve not given enough information).
Enjoy the bump. Makes a change from the no gain threads 
I think one of the worst things about modern cycling is that people are discouraged from taking a real test focused on whatever their current training goals are. It baffles me that people will turn themselves inside out to complete a “normal” workout, but then choose to trust software over testing their actual performance capabilities.
Yup, biggest and best change to my training has been testing my performance. When I say testing; I don’t mean by killing myself for 8 minutes in a ramp test but seeing how hard I can ride after some rest for 35+ minutes.
I actually enjoy those “test” more than any ramp test I’ve ever done.
Although you may not have used TR in the past 2 years, there is still plenty of ride data synced to your TR account for us to reference.
We initially dropped you down 29 watts when you returned on April 21st, and then detected a six-watt increase yesterday after just over four weeks of training. I’d say that’s pretty fair.
For there to be such a big change four weeks ago and still see a reasonable (<10 watts) increase four weeks later tells me that, if anything, our initial FTP detection for you was pretty darn close. 
What!? Well, I totally believe it. C’mon, @DROCH , you know you’re a monster. Stop fishing for compliments. 
Well I’ve barely been able to budge my estimated FTP over the last 4 months based on the inffered FTP on Garmin and Intervals ICU which both have me at an average 230ish … re-activated TR a month ago which also converged on the 230ish FTP. 1 month later I’ve popped up on TR but Intervals and Garmin haven’t budged.
2 years ago my inferred FTP on Garmin / Intercals ICU / Trainer road seemed move in sync with each other.
Look I’m not dogging TR, I just extended my membership for 1 year (so I guess that FTP boost worked 
) … I guess I’m suspect of my FTP increase and how easy it could be to game the system to increase customer satisfaction. You know just a little hit, but not too much 
I’ll keep on going with TR maybe one day I’ll break 300
Ha … 
yeah a monster
I can say confidently that we are. 
From what I can see, your FTP of 270 looked accurate based on some of your ride data within the past 30 days of that initial detection on March 2nd.
All of the RPE scores you gave the workouts early on looked solid, and you even gave a high-level VO2 Max workout a “moderate” rating. It looks like the following VO2 workout we prescribed is the one that you struggled with, which prompted you to drop your FTP down 5 watts.
The following week, you rated high-level VO2 and Threshold workouts as moderate, which tells me that those workouts likely weren’t difficult enough for you with that new, lower FTP.
I’d be curious to have seen what would have happened had you rested up before that VO2 workout you struggled with on March 11th, which was only three days after a hard race, or if you would have let TR adjust your future workouts rather than bumping your FTP down right away. 
If your workouts are going well, I would try to be less suspicious. 
We want athletes to have the best success with their training/racing, and giving inaccurate estimations wouldn’t help that at all.
I can’t speak to Garmin or ICU’s tools, but I am confident in ours. Keeping your estimations even between all three platforms seems like a tricky task and somewhat strange goal.
It’s okay to reference other sources, but at some point, you’re going to have to pick one to trust and go with it! 
Because cycling for many, including me, is about fun rather than flagellation?
I guess the proof will be in the pudding as try to stick to the TR tightly over the next couple months.
I’ve been on TrainerRoad for just over a month now. I have been training reasonably hard for the last year after 3 years of doing zero. Pre Covid i had a coach and got my FTP to 331 via testing.
Ive not done a test since and in my head i think i’m about 305. My main type of rides are Z2 or long sustained rides of up to about 2 hours at about 250watts.
When i joined TR the main attraction for me was the accountability of following a plan and the AI FTP - i dont want to be not training for a few days to do a test (so the test is accutrate.
Anyway - the AI FTP came out at 287 - perhaps a little low, but based on my rides and training data I can understand that as it does not have any “interval” type sessions to go on. All it can do is work on the data it has. The planned sessions have been very manageable and I have pushed harder than required.
What has really impressed me is the way it keeps re-evaluating and has been making my sessions just a bit harder (thats what it seems!). Got the AI to update yesterday and it is now 300. If i was doing a test perhaps I could squeeze a bit more out but i think it is pretty realistic. In general my body more tuned in keep going - so i am better at sustained power of 1hour+
So for me I dont think is marketing - just the way it is and the AI FTP is just a number. It is no different o the argument as to which type of FTP test you do!
What I’m seeing on the backend is a manual entry of 292 and then an FTP detection of 270, less than two minutes later, on March 2nd. Your next FTP change didn’t come until the 11th.
Regardless, I’d recommend familiarizing yourself a bit more with our post-workout surveys if you don’t feel confident in them, since they play a significant role in how we track your performance in workouts.
If you feel like you’re not getting the most out of part of the product we offer, I’m sure we could help get things in order for you! 
Yes, I agree!
Stay in touch along the way and let me know how things go.
Welcome to the forum! 
I’m glad that things are working out for you!
Thanks for sharing your experience. 
If you ever have any questions, feel free to reach out!
It’s been a month now.
Latest AI FTP review raised it 3 points to 247 or something.
So I think I know the issue is now. I’m using a Saris H3 for TR and double sided 4iiii for the road and the H3 is overstating the power.
In the last month I’ve been heavy on indoor trainer not much outside.
Garmin FTP rose in line with TR when I was on the trainer for the last month. Garmin V02 MAX raised 4 points in a month while exclusively using the trainer (seems ambitious)
First ride back outside, Garmin FTP drops 7+ points and V02 max drops 2 points
Obviously the Saris H3 is overstating power figures.
It would be nice to be able to adjust this down in TR
You can use PowerMatch to eliminate the discrepancy between your smart trainer and power meter if you’re using the bike with the 4iiii on your H3.
It might be worth testing the discrepancy, too. You could put the 4iiii bike on your H3 and start a workout with your power meter connected to your phone or head unit and your H3 connected to TR.
You’ll be able to see the power readings from each device simultaneously then.
Let me know if this helps!
