Am I too old to get to 4w/kg

Hi guys new to TR. Amazing product and really enjoying it thanks. My question to people is. Am I to old are my good years past me. I just did a ramp test after ssb1 mv. I got a 10 watt bump. I’m a bit disappointed with my FTP as of now. I’m down about 35 watts from two years ago. My question is at 45 years of age can I get back to 4w/kg. I’m a 3.4 now. It seems so far away

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What’s your height, weight and FTP number? :slightly_smiling_face:

And I believe the answer is no! You are not too old! :metal:t3:

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I am 5-11
165lbs
Current FTP is 255
Puts me at 3.4w/kg I think.

I would need a FTP of 300 to get to 4w/kg seems like it’s as far as the moon right now.

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Dude!! You’ve got this!!

I’m 44 years old and will be 45 in July. I am at 3.77 w/kg at a current weight of 79.3kg, and a target race weight this summer of 77kg.

My FTP is currently 299 (all time high at my age) and need to get to 308 - 317 FTP depending on weight. And I view it as manifest destiny. If I do the work, I’m convinced the 4w/kg will come. I expect to be there by the time I turn 45.

I was in a year long plateau at around an FTP of ~265 until I signed up for TR. That was 6 months ago, and now I’m on the doorstep of 300.

It will be “easier” for you since you’ve been there before. This is uncharted territory for me.

You. Have. Got. This.

Put your shoulder to the wheel and trust the process :metal:

Good luck!

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Thanks so much it’s great to hear from ppl in the same boat. Well I wish I was in your boat. Great job on your numbers and thanks for the encouragement. I will kill myself trying that’s for sure.

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I hope you are correct for his and my sake.

I started back after a year layoff last year at around 140 watts. Up to 230 now. Not sure I’ll ever see the 280 needed for 4 w/kg. Never have seen it before with a lot of cycling experience, and now more age. Will be 40 in two months, can’t see beating my bests from when I was younger.

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You got this. I’m 44 started riding 14 months ago and hover around 4.2-4.3. I’m far from satisfied as we all are. Once you get to 4.0 you’ll want more. We always do. Tell me I’m to old and I train harder. Just how I think.

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I hope not. My goal at 51 (175cm, 69.5kg) is to hit 4W/kg. I’ve gone from 2.4 to 3.75 but I know that last 0.25 is going to be the hardest

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Wow 90 watts that’s amazing great job. It does seem a bit tougher as we get older. Not sure if being a smaller guy makes it harder as we age. I notice some of the stronger guys my age are a bit bigger with a bit more muscle mass.

Wow congrats those are awsome numbers and you are a smaller guy. Weight wise

Yeah I thought age would screw anyone hoping to hit 4.0 or higher then I met a 50 year old on the road who turns out to ride just over 4.5 and he’s not a life long racer or anything like that. He trains consistently from what I can tell from his Strava and definitely eats reasonably clean.

After I saw that I’m like I can do anything I want cycling wise if I focus on it. Just depends how much you want it and how many times can you get back on the wagon when you fall off.

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I do a lot of Vo2 work. And when I do long periods of concentrating on that (4-5 weeks) I see the biggest gains. Then I try to lock it in with a period of sweet spot work, and then back at it.

I don’t know what your regimen is, but that is mine. Vo2 blows the lid off for me. And it sucks just as much for me as it does for most.

I have no history of any sort of accomplishment in endurance sports of any kind. I was a football/basketball player growing up and was pretty good at those. My fastest 5k ever is 21 mins which almost killed me - and I did some triathlons in my mid-30s, but was never able to break 2:30 in an Olympic distance – despite working hard for it.

I am average in every sense of the word from an endurance perspective. I feel if I can do it – anyone can.

The only caveat being that I am really “fit” between 170 - 180 lbs. If you are pretty fit at 220 lbs, I could see that being an issue because achieving a 400 FTP would be pretty special.

Keep at it. Embrace the suck.

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I’m a small guy at 141lbs. I always wish I was a little bigger so I could put out more power but it’s just not in my genetics I guess…

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Thanks. I’ve always been active but only have done structured training once before many years ago. Big gains came quick from zero to structured training and I am fairly disciplined about it. Last ramp was no gains but I may be plateauing on accumulated training stress and need to make some plan adjustments.

Huh, I’m interested in this too. Turning 40 this Friday :slight_smile:

FTP at 248 after a small bump after SSB1 (testing again tomorrow as I just finished SSB2). 85kg, 6’ tall. Could probably lose 2-4kg fairly easily. I’m pretty muscular, not a ton of dead weight to drop.

With any luck, I’ll be at or over 3 watt/kg after the test tomorrow.

Doing the math…I’d need to get to 320 ftp, and down to 80kg for 4 watt/kg.

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No way. I’m closing on 42 and pretty sure I’ll get to 4 this season, my first solely focusing on cycling coming from a running and triathlon background. Now, we might have genetic limits which prevent us from getting there, but something like 5% of TR users over 40 are over 4W/kg self reported (TR W/kg age buckets). So while age affects it, you’re not too old!

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Four is my aim…at 45. And I am heavier than the OP. Many miles to be ridden first though after a hiatus over December/January knocked me back 60W…

But goals are goals for a reason!

(oh to be 23 again…lol)

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According to Friel in Fast over 50, high intensity work is a bigger contributor to maintaining fitness as we get older but we tend to do less of it for various reasons like “you’re too old to stress yourself” or it is just not comfortable any more and replace it for long-slow-distance. LSD helps some but HIT helps more. so yah, embrace the suck and go deep

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55 next month and currently at 254 FTP at 76kg so just 3.34, but only two years ago I was hovering at the 4wpkg mark.

Now doing triathlon and got 5km time down to 20.48 at the weekend and putting in the structured training consistently so I am also interested in the question.

I certainly think I can go close if I stick at it.

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Thanks, but a lot of that was just off the couch gains!

My all time high is 265, kind of float around 220 -230 in general.

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