I recently had a performance test done, and I’m trying to make sense of the data to better tailor my training. I’m an ~88 kg rider, 190 cm tall, 38 years old, and here are some key numbers (I have more available but I belive these are the most relevant):
FTP / 4 mmol lactate threshold: 318 W (~3.6 W/kg) –> matches with TR AI FTP Detection
Power at 2 mmol lactate: 263 W
VO2max (spirometry): 45 ml/kg/min –> seems very low? Garmin estimates at around 55-60
Max power measured (Pmax): 350 W –> last ramp in the ramp test, not relevant I guess?
Max heart rate during test: 156 bpm –> during cycling I could do HR of 170-175, does this mean my effort during the test was not high enough?
A few things I’ve been wondering about:
What do you make of my low VO2max of 45 ml/kg/min. Is this normal for heavier riders?
The 2 mmol and 4 mmol lactate points are quite close (263 W vs 318 W). Any idea what this means / how to interpret this? Does a small gap here indicate a narrow “lactate tolerance zone” that I should focus on expanding through training i.e. should I focus on raising my FTP?
How would you assess my overall performance level based on these numbers?
I ride races just for fun (2-3 times per year) with no ambitions to win. If there is one area where it would make sense to be strong, it’s on climbs lasting between 3 and 10 minutes, due to the local geography to chase some KOMs and PRs.
From these results, what should I take away for my training or training focus? Where would it be most beneficial to put my effort?
I’d appreciate any insights or training recommendations, especially regarding improving aerobic capacity, lactate threshold zones, and climbing performance.
We really need to see the raw test data to help and not the interpreted values, especially if the tester is using generic values (2 and 4 mmol/l) for thresholds.
Also, some test data is suspect. For example, there’s likely no way you have an FTP of 300+ watts on a VO2max less than 50. Your Garmin estimate is more reasonable.
The idea is to look at the test data to see if it makes sense in context, and then determine if the data is applicable to your training. The lab data by itself is fairly useless, in my opinion.
It’s useful to have a few things when looking at lab data…past 60-90 day meanmax power curve, recent race results (if available), and the lab data.
We can probably provide better opinions on your situation if we have the extra data to evaluate.
And this is the raw measurement data I believe. I should add that this was done as part of a cardiological examination (focusing on heart health, not performance diagnostics), so there may be a few things missing that would have been measured during a sports-focused professional performance diagnostic test.
The “/kg” units (per kilogram) in the VO2max indicate that the reading is based on your weight, so your weight is relevant to the VO2max number, and if you weighed less and consumed the same amount of oxygen, the number would be higher.
Do you do a lot of zone 2 riding and not a lot of VO2max/over threshold work? That might explain a lot of what you’re asking (e.g., I don’t typically do vo2max intervals as often as I should, so I know that I need to do some for a few weeks before I attempt any kind of ramp test if I want good results).
3min steps are too short for the lactate to stabilize. The ftp is the maximal power at which lactate level stabilizes. If you ride above ftp, lactate will keep rising. The lactate level at which this happens can vary by athlete, for some it will be 4mmol, for others it could be 8. That’s why we look for an inflection point in the lactate curve during a ramp and not for a specific value. making a linear regression between 300w and 350w is wrong, even if the steps would have been longer.
Was this test a max effort? It would not change FTP, but maybe you never reached VO2max. 156/175bpm is only 89% of max hr. A common practice to evaluate VO2max intervals is to count time spent above 90%, so here it would be zero.
The correct way to do the test would be to have longer steps, test lactate at the end of each steps looking for an inflection point, monitor your VO2 and stop the test when VO2 stop rising.
I also see that your historical 20 min power is 310w. Was it a max effort? a common estimation of ftp is 95% of 20min power. your ftp cannot be higher than your 20 min max effort power.
If I understand you correctly, you are saying that little or nothing can/should be inferred from the results because the test procedure is not suitable for this purpose? Based on the table, a lactate curve was of course also created, but I assume that this is just as unsuitable.
I guess the test was supposed to be a max effort, but the setup made it difficult (no fan, ergometer bike) and my max HR of 156 was significantly below what it would have been during a max effort. Nevertheless, I stopped the test because I couldn’t pedal anymore at the end (I could have possibly continued for another 1-2 minutes). So I would say “near max” given the circumstances.
No, the 20m@310W were not a maximum effort; if I remember correctly, they were part of a 40-minute (almost all-out) effort.
I looked at your info a bit more and there are some interesting discrepancies and the test protocol makes me scratch my head. Was there a warm-up before the test?
Some additional observations:
I don’t really think that the reported fixed lactate value thresholds are useful for you.
Your AI FTP seems to be overestimating your FTP based on your MMP data.
As mentioned, if the steps in the test were longer with smaller wattage differences, the lactate curve might have provided better info. The lactate values would need to be shifted/corrected.
LT1 estimate is really difficult given #3. Maybe LT1 is somewhere between 220-250 watts (wild guess).
LT2 estimate is just so-so. The curve shape may have been better with one more step to get a point higher on the lactate curve.
The VO2max estimate you provided is really odd. From your 5 minute power and weight of 88 kg, I get an estimate of 55 ml/kg/min. Could be slightly higher or lower.
I’m interested in what model is being used for AI FTP, since you said it’s estimated at 318 watts. That’s higher than your 30 minute power.
I fit a few models to your MMP data and made a guess at a range for your LT2. I’m really inclined to think your FTP is somewhere around 300 watts. Just a guess.
I wouldn’t use this particular lab data if it were mine. Also, AI FTP is overestimating, I think. If you want to set your FTP, I’d would just use the NP from a long (40-60 minute), near-max effort if that’s possible to work in to training.
