Haven't you heard? FTP is dead.

Oh Andrew... let's not get all dramatic again.

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Inside The Big Ring: Podcast & Coaching

There are many threads on each of the questions you've asked. I would use the search feature to your right and you'll find a lot of information.

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Inside The Big Ring: Podcast & Coaching

Dramatic? I was trying to be funny.

ETA: Would it help if I suggested that somebody write a book about training and racing with a power meter?

Take some initiative ffs. ;)

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My Blog - http://leegoocrap.blogspot.com

What can I say? I have always been more of a follower than a leader.

I use TrainerRoad for my training. The folks at TR have set up a couple of plans which you can choose out. Last year I greatly improved my biking by following the SweetSpot base I & II. These plans include FTP tests so it will adjust your workouts accordingly.

I've also bought "the book", it's nice to have a basic understanding about training with power. But IMO not necessary when using something like TR.

https://www.amazon.com/...Hunter/dp/1934030554

Read this

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blog

Google the guy who responded to your post.

DFW_Tri wrote:

Google the guy who responded to your post.

I made it even easier for him, just click HERE. First search result is a winner, no bamboozles.

I rode by power religiously for the first couple years on a power meter. Read the materials others have suggested and if you're new to this type of training you'll probably see some good gains. I tested every 6-8 weeks and it's nice to see the trend go up. I found stuff like the 2x20m, 4x10 and 3x8 sessions worked well at raising my FTP initially.

My current coach goes by HR zones and time for the workouts, rather than power. And we use power to determine if the plan is working. I prefer this for a few reasons. (e.g. one n+1 use case, if I'm starting to become ill, it'll prob show up in my HR. Whereas if the target is power I'll either bury myself to hit it which may accelerate the illness, or I'll abandon the session and feel crap that I suck and can't hit numbers). My reasons are more qualitative than quantitative for this preference so very N=1.

With that background:


We measure my power at specific heart rates and if that's increasing then we know I'm improving. E.g. if I'm going to do a 70.3 at 150bpm and last year I was doing 190w and this year I'm doing 200w, I'm probably going to perform better.


If I was coaching myself I would use it and test every 6-8 weeks, but I don't think that's the only way to go. My plan has FTP-like sessions (e.g. 2x12 minutes with a 2 minute break). I can't speak for my coach's plan, but he rarely has me do FTP sessions. I find they zap my legs for a few days, and I would guess that my coach prefers me to cool it by 2-5% and then use the extra energy to get in more volume somewhere else (e.g. a hard run).


Heart rate zones and time. For power based training do power and time. If you're outside, distance varies on hills, wind, etc; so if you leave the door and do a power x distance workout, you don't really know exactly how long you'll be riding for.


If you haven't done structured training before you're probably going to derive most of the benefit just by entering into a structured program. My N+1 is that the benefit between riding by heart rate and power varies from person to person. However having power measurements (using either approach) is MASSIVELY helpful. And buying the prementioned books will help you understand how you can effectively use it.

Lastly, the most difficult thing is doing an easy workout while on zwift. If I have an endurance ride and I'm pootling around it is very hard not to hit the hammer when you get to a timed section of the course! You'll need self-control!

Find out what your friends' FTP is and keep doing FTP tests until yours is higher

If this fails just lower your weight on Zwift until your watts/kg exceed those of your friends.

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2x Deca-Ironman World Cup (10 Ironmans in 10 days), 2x Quintuple Ironman World Cup (5 Ironmans in 5 days), Ultraman, Ultra Marathoner, and I once did an Ironman.

I hear digital EPO is a thing too!

Just stepped off the scale: 11 pounds. I swear!

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https://connect.garmin.com/modern/profile/domingjm

Or click here if you want to know about what I actually do for a living (vs. a hobby).