Get ready for FTP Testing!
By Coach Pam Semanik
Before we get too far into base training, it’s good to know your current training zones. These zones, or levels of intensity, are defined by some measure of physical exertion, typically heart rate (HR) or power, or more subjectively by perception of effort. Your training plan will prescribe which zone(s) you should be targeting for your daily workout. It’s important to pay attention to these zones and make sure you’re hitting the appropriate training intensity. If you’re working too hard, or not hard enough, you might be limiting future progress.
We determine your current training zones by performing a Functional Threshold test. Without getting too deep into the science of lactate (a molecule created during the breakdown of glucose), we can do a ‘field test’ on the bike to approximate your Lactate Threshold (which is tested directly with blood samples). The Lactate Threshold (LT) is the intensity where your lactate production exceeds lactate breakdown. One way we can determine LT in the field is by having you ride as hard as you can for 60 minutes. You wouldn’t like us if we did that, so we have you do a test that approximates that intensity fairly accurately.
Field tests are on-the-bike measurements of HR and/or power (preferably both) at a specific intensity. There are a few varieties of field testing, including the Ramp Test (where you increase your power output incrementally until you can’t pedal anymore), the 20-minute test (which is a 20-min all-out time trial, only about 1/3 as painful as the all-out hour long test), and the 8-minute field test.
Most of our cycling clients will be doing the 8-minute field test in early December. This test, developed by Chris Carmichael, consists of a long warm up followed by two all-out, 8-minute efforts, with 10 minutes recovery in between. You will need a heart rate monitor, and preferably a power meter, to perform this test. You can do this test outside, on a flat (or slightly uphill) course that allows you to ride the full 8 minutes safely and without having to stop or turn around- or you can do this on an indoor trainer.
If you use a standard stationary (“dumb”) trainer, you simply collect data through your bike computer. Be sure to set your device for indoor riding, so that it doesn’t ‘auto-pause’ in the middle of your effort. If you’re proficient with setting up data programs on your device, you can create a file that treats each segment as its own ‘lap’, therefore getting an accurate measurement of each 8-minute interval. Or you can hit the lap button at the start and end of each of the 2 intervals. But if you don’t, it’s OK – we can do this through Training Peaks when you upload your data file. The only thing you need to do is keep track of the time while you’re riding so you know when to start and end each segment of the workout.
If you have a smart trainer or you use an online trainer program like Zwift, Roovy or TrainerRoad, you can download the training file and allow the program to keep time for you. Choose as flat a course as possible, since any elevation changes, even though their ‘virtual’, will skew your effort. For any FTP test, the ERG mode should be turned ‘off’ (not an issue if you use the Training Peaks workout file with you smart trainer). The program will show you a RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion) target as well as a cadence target. The cadence target will help you find the right gearing for each effort.
Warm up well. Start your first interval from a standstill, like you’re starting a time trial race. Take the first 45 to 60 seconds to find the right gearing and ‘settle in’. You should ride as hard as you can for the full 8-minutes. One thing I DON’T want you to do is watch your power or heart rate during these efforts! Remember that this test is to determine your zones – you don’t get graded on your effort and you don’t have to hit a certain benchmark. Don’t let your pursuit of some arbitrary number dictate your performance. Just give it all you’ve got!
When you get to the recovery between efforts, do NOT stop pedaling! You can shift your gears so you’re spinning lightly, but keep moving your legs through this 10-minute ‘off’ interval. When it’s time to start your second effort, repeat the instructions above. Cool down completely after the 2nd interval, and be sure to save your data. We will take the higher of the two averages for both HR and power to calculate your zones, regardless if the highest average HR and power occurred during the same effort. We then plug those numbers into a formula that determines your training zones. You can see the calculation page, and full instructions, here: https://trainright.com/cycling-field-test/
And that’s it! We input your Functional Training HR (FTHR) and Functional Training Power (FTPo) into your Training Peaks profile, where it then calculates all your workout zones automatically. Check it out next time you’re playing around on your Training Peaks account, and let your coach know if you have any questions.
Good luck and go get ‘em!