Moved cities: time to retest FTP?

Training
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So, I failed today’s workout (Bluebell), which is a VO2 max workout. I had to bail at the half of the last interval.

One of the reasons might be that, as the title says, I moved cities this weekend. That might not sound dramatic, but in the process I moved across six time zones, gained 2km of altitude and the air over here is much more polluted. Can this new environment affect my FTP to a significant degree?

However, other reason might be that the move was very stressful. Due to COVID-19, my flight got cancelled 3 times. Furthermore, my baggage got lost during the transfer. That baggage included my bicycle and the trainer. I got it today after being lost during 3 days… Could that added stress be the reason of my today’s terrible performance?

Thanks for any feedback and comment!

2
  • Very likely, yes.
  • Initial change in elevation in short period can negatively impact your ability. Eventually you will adapt to a new normal, but even then it will probably be lower than your prior lower elevation values.
  • Very likely, yes.
  • You can take a few days to reset and try again, see how it goes.
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Sounds like the perfect storm to me! So don’t feel bad about bailing from a workout. Once you’re settled into your new place, re-test your FTP. Do you have a scheduled test coming up as part of your plan?

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4

I just moved too. I went down 3000 ft but I haven’t ridden in two weeks due to the move. And I don’t know the roads and have a bit less daylight here so I need to reinvent the training wheel completely. It’s going to be more trainer time and less road time for sure.

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5

I’d consider taking a few days off. Doing a recovery week and then getting back to the grind. Moving is a MAJOR stress situation. Don’t underestimate it.

I mean, if you have a race coming up… maybe don’t be so extreme, but if you’re just training for next year like many others. Think about whether you need to take a break, or perhaps doing some exploration rides.

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6

Rule of thumb is VO2max declines by about 6% for every 1000m of elevation gain (before acclimatization).

So highly unlikely you’ll be able to match you “old” VO2max in the first few days after a move.

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7

So, an update. I have tried to complete the program while adjusting the difficulty. First to 97%, 95% and then to 90%. Empirically, 90% seems to be the right spot, which is congruent with the expected drop in performance from scientific studies.

This is kind of bums me out. I was so proud of finally reaching my long life dream of attaining over 300fps, and now its back in the 280’s. :frowning:

Does this means that my sea level FTP is still 308? :thinking:

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Remember only your environment has changed, not your capability! Just channel your inner Nate and tack “at sea level” onto everything. “What’s your FTP?” “300 at sea level.”

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9

You’re altitude training every day now! Give it a few weeks, then go down to sea level and do a few max efforts :wink:

But for now, as others above have said, take a few days to recover from the stress of the move, then ease yourself back into training.

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Last time I did a big move it cost me 50W in 2 months! Some of that was from missing training but I was still getting out on the bike fairly regularly, I put the majority of it down to all the stress of packing, unpacking, new school for the kids, etc, etc. Came back very quickly once we were settled and I was back in a good training routine again.