Realistic FTP for 68 year old male

I’m a 68 year old male that usually ride around 4000 to 5000 miles a year with most of the miles being pleasure riding. I recently purchased Garmin Vector pedals and would like to know what is a realistic FTP for my age. I keep hearing about FTP’s of 300 watts and don’t think this is realistic for me. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

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Your weight has a lot to do with your Watt output . So if you are 90 kg , 300 Watt is much more attainable than if you are 60 kg . Hence the W/Kg is more important than watts alone. A lot also depends on your genetics . My advice don’t look too much at what others have but live with what you have and try to improve on it :wink:

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Just wanted to post on this and say WOW! I don’t wish to seem condescending but if I’m still enjoying and able to ride a bike like you do at 68, I will be very pleased!

Good luck with your Ramp Test.

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I was about to write - it’s amazing that you are doing that sort of miles as you approach 70 but then realised that sounds really condescending! Age being just a number etc etc.

So can I rephrase it to say that I hope I continue to have the drive and capacity to cycle like that for decades to come - congratulations to you sir!

As previous poster says it seems that actual FTP varies widely and that depending on your weight - the better measure of compatibility is w/kg. I am 34 and weight 88kg - down from 101 this year and have ftp of 234. So for me hitting even 3/w/kg is a big first target.

Best thing is to do ramp test - well tested etc. Push till you’re done and then begin a base programme - low probably or mid sweet spot base is what TR recommend for most general cyclists like ourselves. if you’re used to doing a lot of miles starting on mid should be ok - I started on SSB mid 1 which is about 6 h per week and it was tiring but doable. Hoping for an FTP increase this coming Tuesday on next ramp test.

The plans will get harder each week which is expected as your fitness increases.

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I’m a 64 year old recreational/pleasure cyclist, 2,500 outside miles this year. I started TR last December at an FTP of 168 and in May it was up to 190. From May - October I rode outside for pleasure and started round 2 of TR in November with an FTP of 172. Pleasure/recreational riding doesn’t appear to help increase or maintain FTP so next outside riding season I’m planning on doing at least one TR ride each week to try and maintain whatever gains I make between now and then.

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I’m 62 and only started cycling 8 years ago after being a bit of a couch potato. Initially it was just to try and help me survive the family heart attack, but found I really enjoyed it. I cycle with guys your age and older who are much stronger than me. In fact one of them is approaching 70 and did The Mammotte last year! I’m 88kg with an FTP of 257W. I realise by best chance of increasing my power to weight is now to loose weight. All this has taught me is that unless you have any health issues age is just a number and you really are just as old as you feel.

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Im 54, one of the guys im riding with is now 70 and is a beast, strong powerful rider who rides hard constantly.

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I’m 61 and now pay more attention to my recovery and nutrition than when I started structured training approx 3 years ago. After your FTP test, just accept it and don’t worry or compare to the other cyclists. Good luck.

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You are where you are whether you are 18 or 68. See where you are and try to improve aspects of your riding that you want to get better.

If you ride for mostly for pleasure it’s even less important - although I guess if you’ve recently bought a PM you are somewhat interested :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

One things for sure, age isn’t a barrier to (relative) performance. I rode a 100 mile TT last year in which a rider from a club near me rode 4hr 15min for 100 miles at 71 years young. Phenomenal stuff.

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63 year old here. I average 4K miles a year over the last 15 years, mostly endurance pace. I’m also new to power but I understand that I will be better to pace myself on the longer rides that I prefer. I have a habit of going too hard too early and blowing up on the last hill , slowing to a crawl.

FTP is what it is. TR will help you improve your power. YOUR number is where your at now. work to make yourself better, surprise your buddies in the spring with good form

What I have found as a more “seasoned” cyclist is that I don’t recover from the workouts as fast as a younger rider. I use the low volume sweet spot plan and I needed to adjust my FTP DOWN a bit to complete the workouts. hopefully that will change as I get used to trainer riding and interval training

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Hey,

I am 61 and have been riding seriously for 3.5 years. 6 months on my own and the last 3 years with a coach. I ride about 5000 miles a year doing two structured training rides and two outdoor rides, usually endurance or hill orientated, of longer duration a week. I went from an FTP of 170 to where I am now at 245. I race with some guys in their 70’s who just blow my doors off. The combination of raising your FTP through structured training combined with weight loss is everyone’s formula for faster riding. But remember this, no matter how you perform compared to others, it is just beautiful to be out on the bike flowing down the roads. It allows me to forget how old I am.

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My dad is 66 and is rocking a 210ish FTP. He barely rides outside anymore because of drivers in his area, but barring knee surgery recovery has been pretty religious about repeating SSB1 & 2 more than most people. He was never a cyclist before this all fell together because he wanted something to stay fit as a former rower. He really loves the structure of it and the fact that there is no guess work about what to do.

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I am 66 and have been using Trainer Road for a couple of years with a Wahoo Kicker trainer. I have set my FTP with trial and error over time and it sits at about 150. I was not training for awhile here and when i came back i noticed that it was a lot harder for me to finish workouts. In fact, i could not finish them. So i backed off the intensity rather than lower my FTP. It seems to get harder as i get older to get back into shape. I have been riding most of my life with my big deal ride from Seattle to Boston when finished college. I too was wondering what the average FTP was for a rider in their 60s. No one wants to give an answer. So it is probably true that all that matters at this stage of life is to keep moving and see if you can raise the difficulty of your workouts over time if you stick to it. 150 watt FTP seems kind of pathetic but you know it works for me as a marker. It is a guideline. 95% of 20 minute max power seems to be a good estimate of FTP.

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The Bell curve of cylists - how fast are the average TR users? - #124 by Nate_Pearson Should shed some light on these questions

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Only on the TrainerRoad forum do you find guys in their 60s with bigger FTPs than riders I know in their 20s and 30s :smiley:

Some nice numbers in this thread. Kudos!

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I ride with guys in their 60’s who are still improving.

Of course, if you’ve been racing bikes for 40 years and training hard and smart, it does go down as you age all other things being equal. But chances are pretty good you are not at your current max so have at it.

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This might be slightly off topic or I got the wrong end of the stick but, didn’t the guys discuss something similar on the Podcast recently? The topic was admitted focused on ex-pros and their seeming ability to retain their fitness.

I’m guessing that even as keen amateurs, we’re developing that muscle memory and nucleus that can be recalled and retrained well into later life.

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One of the guys I ride with is 70 and his FTP is over 300. Im 54 and he is an inspiration to me.

Everyone is different, so cant compare people.

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My dad (64) is still pretty handy on a bike and does affair bit of running too. He found Joe Friel’s “Fast over 50” book really useful and has made various changes to his training (more weights etc) and diet (more protein) which he thinks have had a big positive effect. Worth checking out.

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I am close to 63 and have an FTP of 230 at 145 lbs, 10 stone 5 for UK readers. I compete in road and CX and do a little one to one coaching. My average TSS is about 550 per week and do 10+ hrs on the bike and a couple of gym sessions per week. Recovery is key and I use Polar Flow and regular orthostatic tests to prevent over reaching. I just like to ride little and often, little means a least an hour a day , maximum is 3hrs in a day.

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