earthling wrote:
I have done zwift ramp tests on my elite direto and never had to change gears. Zwift controls the trainer resistance for you. You need to leave the trainer in ERG mode for the test and just pedal. I usually focus on maintaining a cadence once things get hard - say 90 RPM - and not worry about the increasing level of difficulty. Just pedal at 90 RPM until you literally cannot pedal any more. I have found it actually happens quite quickly that you go from struggling to keep going to simply not able to pedal. I found the test accurate, repeatable and happy to do them every few weeks to keep tabs on my estimated FTP.
People will argue how accurate it is. Honestly, how accurate is the 20 minute test? Of the 1 hour test? They are all estimations of an estimation at the end of the day. The ramp test seems as accurate as any other test IMO and easier to do regularly.
Not directly at you Earthling but,
Was about to post something similar, re cadence. I find erg mode seems to work better with a 85-90rpm than 100+. Let the trainer do the work for you. I could be wrong (make that probably!!) but using a smaller gear means higher torque, and less trainer speed.
The problem imo is the ramp tests start too low, so you are hitting stupid leg speeds to hit low watts, then once you get to where its getting fruity, your legs don't like it anymore, and erg is saying that it wants to do whatever watts at your previous cadences.
Keep it smooth with a hint of pressure.
Erg mode removes any inbuilt gradient changes, its a visual only.
FWIW my ramp test results were close enough to where I thought I was anyway.