So I have done a 20-minute FTP test on ZWIFT and failed after 15 minutes. So the last time I did an FTP test for 20 minutes was 263 watts, and multiply that value by 95% to get your FTP, so mine was around 248 250, but after almost 2 months, I did an FTP test today and failed after 15 minutes.
I started with doing 280 watts at 5 minutes, then I came to 250 240, and then fatigued out.
And I think I was doing overtraining, like most of the ride was zone 3, thinking that I would improve, but I think because of overtraining my ftp has dropped. So does doing overtraining decrease your FTP?
So can anyone suggest to me why my FTP has dropped and what I should have done or what I should do to increase my FTP?
Maybe your pacing was wrong or you had an off day, it was too hot etc…
I bought wko5. It can model FTP from “failed” incorrectly paced efforts too as long as it was all out and somewhere between 10-12 and 80 minutes…
So mostly i have been training 2hours and 2hour30min and mostly all of my ride are zone 3 so i have been over training thinking that i will improve and i did 280 at starting because i was feeling that i have improved but i don’t think so. So does over training decrease ftp?
Without getting into your training, past or future, I think it’s safe to say the pacing of the ftp test was overly aggressive
You started at a value that’s in vo2 range based on your last test. There’s no shame in this, pacing a 20 minute test is a skill that very few have mastered
Personally I find it easier to pace a longer test, more tiring but much easier to get an accurate number
Before you adjust your entire training program I’d strongly recommend you try testing again. If you stick with the 20 minute protocol try doing the first 5 minutes at 5-10 watts below what you did on your test from two months ago and only adjust your effort upwards or downwards after you finish those five minutes
We’d agree with what other athletes here have been saying – it sounds like you may have started out a bit too aggressively, and it caught up to you at the end. It’s also possible you were on an “off” day or just a bit fatigued, so I wouldn’t stress about thinking that your FTP has gone down quite yet.
You might get a different test result with a more conservative pacing strategy and a bit of recovery going into it – but keep in mind that an effort from testing is only representative of a single day of your overall training.
That’s why we prefer AI FTP Detection over Ramp Tests/20min Tests these days – it takes a look at all of your recent and historical training data rather than a single effort.
So, consider those points when reviewing your FTP test results. You shouldn’t think of it as a failure – it’s something you can learn from! Think about how you might pace the effort differently next time, try to make sure you’ve had at least a bit of rest before the day of your test, and be sure to think of how your training has been going overall. Even if your FTP doesn’t swing wildly up/down with each fitness assessment, if you feel like you’re getting stronger and you can repeat efforts/hold power for longer durations, you’re on the right track.
Yeah i think i overshoot it and actually i was in a overtraining zone form 2 months thinking i will improve form it and that’s why i started at 280 watts but i think i haven’t?
So can you suggest me something or a training way that will help me increase my ftp for longer duration and how much time it takes to increase ftp
Thanks Zackery for the kind words and suggestions it’s really motivating for me and
Zackery can you suggest me something like what training plan should i stick with that will help me improve my ftp.
So my wieght is 78 and height is 179cm so i am actually looking for a time trail event and i want to hold 270 watts for atleast an hour so can you suggest me something?
If you happen to be interested in TR plans, we offer TT plans that will help guide you to your goals.
In general, working on Tempo and Sweet Spot efforts should help you build up your aerobic engine when you’re further out from your target event. As you get closer to your race, you should switch from Tempo/Sweet Spot and focus more on Threshold and VO2 Max intervals. You’ll want to build up to long-duration intervals since you’ll have to hold power for a long time during a TT effort.
This TR article has some more tips that might help you out:
Okay thanks Zackery for the information and just one question that as i have mentioned that i have been training in zone 3 alot and thats means overtraining basically. So do you think i need to do more zone 2 ride and does zone 2 ride will increase my ftp? And as you said threshold and sweetspot so these two are also at a medium high intensity workout So don’t you think it will again comes in my over training zones? how many time in a week do we have to do threshold training
This does not mean you have been overtraining, and overtraining does not mean what you think it does.
You just weren’t fit enough for the pacing that you went out at, or were overly fatigued on that day.
I’d agree with the above - better pacing for a 20 minute effort, I like to be fresh for those efforts, and following a TR plan like mentioned above would be your best option. Additional Z2 volume on top of correctly executing intervals as part of your plan will all help with increasing your FTP over time. The best thing you can do - stick to the plan and be consistent, respect rest and recovery days.
As @BCM said, Zone 3 doesn’t necessarily equate to overtraining. Overtraining is when you’re doing more volume/intensity than you can handle, which eventually leads to excess fatigue and/or burnout.
Zone 2 is a good ingredient to any training plan, but it alone won’t raise your FTP. Generally speaking, you should try to have 2-3 days of higher intensity work (think Tempo or above) per week, with the rest of your riding being spent in Zones 1 and 2.
This TR article might help you understand power zones and how they affect your training a bit more clearly:
I’ve also done 20min tests where it has been a slow declining death march. As already mentioned, sounds like you went out way too hard.
Plus doing lots of zone 3 won’t necessarily translate to guaranteed adaptations. Depends on so many things, but the stimulus needs to be novel or at least build slightly week to week. No plan guarantees improvement for every person, in the absence of a coach, I would probably trust the TR training plans - either one of their standard ones or a custom one. That will help you build week on week.
If you really want to do a 20min test, then it’s a good idea to be even fresher than you think is necessary and probably only after the first 5 minutes should you be wondering if the power level is sustainable. Really you should do it blind, but your existing 20min power for the first 5 wouldn’t be a bad place to start and then ramp it up. You’ll quickly know if your previous 20min power is too easy.
It’s possible you’re fatigued. Maybe take an easy week and then test again.
But even if you weren’t fatigued, a 20-25W increase in FTP is a pretty big jump. You could still have improved but maybe it was 5-10W.
Some tips for 20min tests might be:
Don’t go in with a too high power target to start. If you really think you’ve improved (not just hoped that you did) then maybe start at 5-10W above your last test.
Ride that for at least 5 min before going any harder. If you’re going too hard it can take several minutes for that to finally catch up to you. So just keep going at your conservative starting point for at least 5 min before thinking you could go harder
Consider doing the 20 min test without looking at power. Tons of people get in their head during a test like this and go way too hard to start. It’s literally the #1 reason that people mess up these tests. Some people find it helps to go completely by feel and then look at the numbers after.
Thanks for your support and suggestions i will take it easy easy for few weeks and then try again. Now i will start with an little bit of less power and than slowly increase it. And also I am going to try some training plan form TR and zwift i have seen that they have some training plans like build me up and active off season maybe training plans can improve and more zone 2 and endurance ride can improve my ftp
I am so so glad I don’t do 20min tests anymore… you have to get good at taking that test as much as you have to improve FTP. If you don’t want to try the AI FTP - try swtiching to a 2x8 min test method. It is much more forgiving in self pacing, I found it much less taxing on the body and overall better.
Personally - the ramp test never worked for me, 20 min is how I started, once I got to the 8 min protocol I realized it was the best test for me…it also more aligned to my race demands at the time.
Treat this as you failed the test, and not your fitness failing you. If you can try a ramp or 8 min in the near future you might find everything is OK.
Pacing was way too hard…but don’t feel bad, I did the same thing about 4-5 weeks ago and only got about 15 minutes in before I realized my mistake. All good though, going to go at it again this weekend and this time, start of easier. My plan is 5 minutes around threshold, 10 minutes about 5 percent above, then last 5 minutes push it as hard as I can without blowing except the last 30 seconds.
I’ll also take this moment to say that FTP tests are not 100% required and after riding for a bit you can certainly feel out your ftp. I’ve been with my current coach for the past year and I’ve never done a traditional FTP test with her.
If we think it’s gone up then I’ve either been given a 3-4x10min session at what feels like FTP. It’s pretty easy by the end of the first or second interval to tell if you’ve nailed it. And if you’ll know pretty quick if you’re over as you’ll start to get that run away train feeling where RPE really starts to skyrocket.
She’s also given me a workout with 10m intervals starting ~5W below FTP and then adding 5W for each interval. You quickly can feel when you’re above FTP.
Though it’s taken a little while to get there. I’m pretty sure if I tried that within my first couple years of riding I would have gone balls to the wall and lied to myself that I was riding at FTP even though I hit max HR and had to lie down after.
