Thanks for the incredible support on this video. 🥰 Here's a response to frequently posted questions. ⤵ - Why aren't you setting your year goal in w/kg instead of w? I will translate it along the way to w/kg in this series. I wanted to prevent introducing too many new terms for viewers that aren't familiar with all the terms yet. - Do you know you cadence sucks in your Ramp Test? Yes, haha. But, it was done in ERG mode on Zwift, which makes it looks worse than it actually is. That being said, working on it. :)
@@philipb.1950as someone who has lost 60 pounds in a year of training, it gets harder to add watts when in a deficit, although the w/kg increase. once i hit my goal weight and stopped eating in a deficit my watts jumped substantially.
@@philipb.1950 300watts is a stretch i think but time will tell but one thing its for sure, its going to be fun and interesting seeing benji going through that journey!
@@dionisispatsias971 it requires some hard session, good food and proper recovery but that should be very much possible in one year if he would do it like that.
@@dionisispatsias971 I got up to a 300 watt FTP in a year and a half, after doing no cardio for 30 years.....and I'm 50. He's very young so he should be able to do it in a year.
I don't have anything against you, but I got great enjoyment from seeing you push yourself to the limit and the suffering that comes with it. I'm exactly the same every time I do a zwift race and try to stay with the leading pack, never works 😅 Thanks for documenting your journey and posting it for us. It gives me motivation to carry on with my goals. I've got a lot of respect for you posting your beginner results when most cycling content creators are posting "My journey to 400w ftp". Your content is so much more relatable.
Awesome video Benj, great to see. I run a lot of ramp tests in a lab measuring VO2max's and other physiological variables. We generally tailor the absolute wattage, starting wattage and increments to each individual and their rough fitness levels. For someone like yourself with a ~200w ftp test I think starting the test at 100watts going up 20w every minute was possibly too high to start you at. Your heart rate didnt quite reach what we'd consider close to your max HR (which is another criteria for a valid VO2max test and I'd suggest this is relevant for an FTP ramp test too). I'd also suggest attempting to negative split the 20min test, so go 15-20 watts below what you think you can do, finish the first 10 minutes and feel good (hopefully), then push on a bit more in the final 10 mins. Well done, great to see this sort of thing on UA-cam!
For me a well paced maximal 20min effort feels like: 0-5min - this is hard, maybe I can hold it, 5-10min - really hard, probably cannot hold this, 10-15min - questioning life choices and then wishing for divine intervention, 15-20min - thought stops, there is only the sensations and pushing as hard as I can go or total implosion. At the moment I find 40+min efforts easier to test as your always above threshold on the 20min effort, but with a 40+min you have some time to find that 'threshold feeling' and don't have such a fine line to walk between a near-maximal effort and total implosion. 20km zwift TTs are also a great way to get the extra motivation to dig deep that I just cannot find in a test workout. Really enjoying following your journey this past year Benji. Health and fitness are things you can easily take for granted until they are taking from you and for me (18ish years in and still improving) cycling is a hobby that can last a lifetime.
Shouldn't be like that. Should feel 0-5 min its Ok I can do more, 5-10 it is stil OK but start to feels a bit hard, 10-15 now we are talking , my legs are hurting, 15-20 O god, I hope this will end soon, cant make it 1-2 min more.
@@stanf6315 maybe our definition of maximal effort is different. 😂. Power is constant for me, the sensations build over time. Walking the tightrope is difficult. Falling to one side is implosion, the other under performance. I may have a little experience with these.
Wow, you actually gave me a brilliant idea: also try an FTP test! Zwift told me recently that my FTP increased from 191 to 197 w but I'm not certain that's correct so doing a 20 min effort should be a better way of finding out where my real FTP is. I also recommend Zwift, been riding there for 4 months and I'm already feeling the progress, in a similar way you call it: from a 💩 cyclist to a not-so-💩 cyclist. Great video!
I really enjoyed this video Benji. I’ve enjoyed watching your ProCycling Manager videos for years but had no idea you were embarking on your own IRL cycling development journey - so cool to see and best of luck to you! ❤
Everyone will finish an FTP ramp test and five minutes later will wonder if they could have gone another segment or two. We all seem to forget we were about to cough up a lung just a few minutes earlier. As for watching your watts, stop it! Find your comfortable cadence (90-93 for me) and watch that. The ERG mode on the bike will take care of getting you to your wattage as long as you keep your cadence steady. Good job, Benji.
I'm sure others have said the same or similar, but with structure Benji a 50W increase is very achievable after 6 months of training! I started at 125 and ended up around 240 in 12 months. My only advice is get that cadence up above 90+ RPM for the duration of the test, its amazing how much easier those higher values are to achieve & hold once you can maintain that! good luck!
I've tested MANY times and can tell you that those two tests were close enough that some margin of error can be written off as pacing. Given that, you're very safe in splitting the numbers and putting your FTP at 195. Great job!!
I've done my fair share of ftp tests and hard interval workouts. I thought it was dumb at first, but during the effort only speaking to yourself positively makes a big difference. Instead of saying my whole body hurts, I say my legs feel fresh and I feel strong. This trick has gotten me through some horrible workouts!
Good job man, looking forward to following your progress! Good job identifying the spiral of death. I find trying to hold 85-90 rpm is a good goal for me, but you'll find your own sweet spot.
I embarked on a similar journey 10 months ago. I lost 15 kg overall so far (from 105 to 90). I did a first FTP test on zwift back in June and was at 201W and I just did another one this week and was at 261W. Keep up the good work, you're inspiring many people!
I found the same problem with the ramp test - I overachieved by about 10% which then made my workouts way too hard! I manually set my FTP lower rather than kill myself on the 20 minute FTP - watching you do it I think I made the right decision 😅
Graaf, leuk concept en zeker leuk om te volgen omdat we je “kennen” van de podcast enzo, ge bent wel echt ne sympathieke kerel en hopelijk haal je u goals, ik duim in ieder geval!
Coming back to this. I find that my Ramp test on an indoor trainer is pretty much spot on with my Outdoor 20min FTP value and my 20 min on the trainer is a few watts less. Every time.
Good watch… only thing I’d say is you need to focus on your cadence. You’ll find having faster legs you can carry more watts and it’ll feel more comfortable. Try and aim for somewhere between 90 to 100rpm… it’ll be hard to start, but once your legs get used to it and it becomes almost muscle memory you’ll definitely feel the improvement! Look forward to following your journey!
I'm brand new to zwift, but chose ramp test, go till you quit fits my lack of mental resilience perfectly. It's not like you win for making your FTP high. You just get harder workouts. If we're not racing, we don't have to train like it's high school track.
Awesome Benji !!! And nice test. Have done my first ramp test a few days ago too. I was not motivated enough for the 20 minutes stuff 😀But I think it's a more accurate result. On the other side I stopped the ramp test as my cadence dropped. Keep it up.
Good job Benji! You should race Patrick on a cobbled secteur! I think you definitely can achieve your goal if you work consistently at it. Losing 20 kg is no joke, and that took commitment. Get this done too!
First of all awesome videos really nice cutting, music etc. feels like u really reaching a new level. 💯 Also really relatable, I think everyone who did a 20min FTP Test is starting to question life decision at the end. 😂 And just a additional "fact" people who are better at the ramp test are most of the time a bit more punchy so good at anaerob stuff people doing better at the 20min Test are more aerobicly talented like climbers. Keep it up!
Great job! One imported thing also to extract from this test is your FTHR and calculate your HR zone 2. Power:HR is an interesting metric to follow on zone 2 rides. Smash it!!
Well done Benji. Enjoying your solo content. Never done an FTP test but assume my 205 watts from Strava is a reasonable estimate, as Ive got 25,000 on there😂 I like to think its higher, as I fairly bomb along (30kph+) for long periods on the flat…but who knows?🤷♂️ Getting Zwift next winter, so Ill try then.
Depends on how aero you are, but 200W on road bike on flats should be around 30-32kph. In winter baloon jacket its around 30kph for me, in summer it gets faster. If you get on drops and have good geometry etc then it can be even more. But 205W for 30+kph seems reasonable.
Great video! over the last 6 months been more focused on fitness, both cardio and strength, which means I split my time roughly 50/50 between spinning and weightlifting, but this is motivating me to spend all my time spinning to get crazy cardio improvements 😅😅
I did these tests the other way round a few months ago. Thankfully I'm very used to doing 20 minute maximum efforts as that is my 5km run race pace so I paced fairly well, but still performed much better on the ramp test.
Great stuff Benji, would be nice to see the difference when focusing purely on your rpm for the ramp test - and for the 20’ one, try a voice over, you had some left in the tank there, otherwise you wouldn’t be able to talk ;-) says the couch coach - going for a purple unicorn 🦄 workout now
Let's keep getting after it brother!!!! Put that work in when nobody is looking, set small goals... SMASH THEM... move the goal post and SMASH THEM AGAIN!!!! 💪🏽
I did structured training like that for over a year and seen massive gains from that when I was at the end of that. Going from an abysmal 2.0W/kg to an unimpressive 2.8W/kg in that time with only 6h/week average training volume. :) So I think the 250W should be very much possible for you! I've done several Zwift FTP tests of the 20min non-ramp version and had lots of issues with the cadence vs. power spiral. To the point of me not using any of them more and doing my own custom one by setting up a free ride on a TT track and manually targeting an effort level. That allows you to also switch between sitting and out of saddle when you get super uncomfortable as you do your 20 min. :) Zwift does track that 20min power for you anyway, even outside of the dedicated FTP tests. I'd recommend you try that! Best of success with the journey!
I've found my best results from an FTP test come when I start at a lower power and ramp up by the end. If you start too high, the lactate builds too quickly, and your power starts to drop due to fatigue. Next time, Benji, try maintaining your current FTP for the first 5 minutes then try to ramp the average up by a few watts every 5 minutes. In this case, for example, start at 198W for 5 minutes, aim for 203 by 10 minutes, 208 by 15 minutes, 213 by 20 minutes or something similar.
Great !!! Also keep in mind that there's a difference between zwift and real life. FTP on zwift for me : 260w. Real life : 283w (both using same Assioma pedals). Questioning a pro coach about that : the bike is steady, and therefore, you can't pull the same force (using the arms, etc...). there's a 5 to 10% margin i suppose... and i'm verifying that all seasons...
The AI FTP Test on TrainerRoad is worth the monthly price alone to skip these miserable tests and just keep riding. Looking forward to seeing your progress in 2023
Great way to start your journey. Just remember the so call FTP is just a range not a number, some days you will feel that you can do more than that, and other days you will feel that number is way too high. The important thing is to have a reference and set your zones with that and then you can always use the zwift companion app to bias control and increase or decrease your workout's difficulty. Of course, don't go over 10% because then you are not doing the intended workout, but that is a good range. If you feel all the workouts are getting easier then you can do a new FTP test again and adjust accordingly
Good luck on your journey. I am 60 kg and my ftp is 250. I will soon finish back to fitness training plan. I am interested which training plan would be helpful to take on next. I also have a problem of riding on too low cadence. While the trainer says around 85 is optimal, around 60 feels natural to me.
Well done Benji! Great suffering. It doesn’t get easier, you just get stronger. Maximal is always maximal. Enjoy the pain 💪 Try train more around 92-95 rpm and do your future threshold testing at this level. I’d also recommend focusing on your heart rate when pacing the test. After some data analysis and further experience in testing, you will know where your FTHR sits and can use that as an indicator of your limit as well as your rate of perceived effort. By using an efficient cadence, threshold heart rate and perceived effort, you will have more guidance to make the pacing far easier. Power and cadence tell you what and how you are producing power. Heart rate tells you what your body thinks feels about it. Heart rate is an important metric. Be sure to monitor it and it will help guide your efforts. It is also the best way to measure your aerobic growth. Power / Heart rate = Aerobic efficiency. As your EF rises, your aerobic base grows and you can start to add more intensity. All the best with your journey to 250W. You are capable of much more.
Hahah I just finished an ftp test and I was cracking up my thoughts were the same as yours at half way.. my ftp test showed 40w lower than my ramp test!!
Nice work Benji! I would put these watts in another perspective. You should check the power to weight ratio. If your FTP is 200W and your weight is 100kg you have 2 W/kg. If you loose another 20 Kg, and your FTP will not increse (probably this will not happen) this number will be 2.5 w/kg. So you will be able to climb faster and go further. This is why categoris are defined in this way in zwift.
Nice! why not set a goal in Watts per kg? Then you can combine the weight loss and becoming a better cyclist. Also, that is the metric that actually matters when going uphill.
Im new in this Sport, i got my kickr Ride this month. My FTP was at 205, 2 weeks later i am already at 255 :) but to BE true, i just did workouts and climbs, suffering a lot. After my first race i instantly got promoted to group C 😅
I think I may try a 20 minute ftp as only ever done a ramp test. I thought aiming higher than your ramp test may make you fade to much and drop below your ramp test result but, I may find my result is lower too even with better pacing. I like the way it shows your average watts throughout that's potentially helpful.
Im not sure if its been said already but its pretty recommended to be spinning the pedals a lot faster so its not so much a strength test at 60rpm but a more cardio at like 80 rpm. So maybe shift down a few more gears if you have them available.
I just turned an FTP of 157 into 220 in 12 weeks using just the "back to fitness" program on zwift and some zone two riding in between. i'm almost a reasonable D class rider now :) good luck with your journey.
Thanks for the incredible support on this video. 🥰
Here's a response to frequently posted questions. ⤵
- Why aren't you setting your year goal in w/kg instead of w? I will translate it along the way to w/kg in this series. I wanted to prevent introducing too many new terms for viewers that aren't familiar with all the terms yet.
- Do you know you cadence sucks in your Ramp Test? Yes, haha. But, it was done in ERG mode on Zwift, which makes it looks worse than it actually is. That being said, working on it. :)
In a year, 250 watts with a good consistent training plan is completely achieveable Benji. Ride on!
with something around 7-8 hrs a week 300 watts should be possible benji is a tall lad
@@philipb.1950as someone who has lost 60 pounds in a year of training, it gets harder to add watts when in a deficit, although the w/kg increase. once i hit my goal weight and stopped eating in a deficit my watts jumped substantially.
@@philipb.1950 300watts is a stretch i think but time will tell but one thing its for sure, its going to be fun and interesting seeing benji going through that journey!
@@dionisispatsias971 it requires some hard session, good food and proper recovery but that should be very much possible in one year if he would do it like that.
@@dionisispatsias971 I got up to a 300 watt FTP in a year and a half, after doing no cardio for 30 years.....and I'm 50. He's very young so he should be able to do it in a year.
Cool video Benji, good luck with the training - I have no doubt you’ll absolutely smash it 👍🏻
Nice suffering! Congratulations on your progress so far and I look forward to following the journey! Thanks for sharing!
I don't have anything against you, but I got great enjoyment from seeing you push yourself to the limit and the suffering that comes with it. I'm exactly the same every time I do a zwift race and try to stay with the leading pack, never works 😅
Thanks for documenting your journey and posting it for us. It gives me motivation to carry on with my goals. I've got a lot of respect for you posting your beginner results when most cycling content creators are posting "My journey to 400w ftp". Your content is so much more relatable.
Awesome video Benj, great to see. I run a lot of ramp tests in a lab measuring VO2max's and other physiological variables. We generally tailor the absolute wattage, starting wattage and increments to each individual and their rough fitness levels. For someone like yourself with a ~200w ftp test I think starting the test at 100watts going up 20w every minute was possibly too high to start you at. Your heart rate didnt quite reach what we'd consider close to your max HR (which is another criteria for a valid VO2max test and I'd suggest this is relevant for an FTP ramp test too). I'd also suggest attempting to negative split the 20min test, so go 15-20 watts below what you think you can do, finish the first 10 minutes and feel good (hopefully), then push on a bit more in the final 10 mins.
Well done, great to see this sort of thing on UA-cam!
For me a well paced maximal 20min effort feels like: 0-5min - this is hard, maybe I can hold it, 5-10min - really hard, probably cannot hold this, 10-15min - questioning life choices and then wishing for divine intervention, 15-20min - thought stops, there is only the sensations and pushing as hard as I can go or total implosion. At the moment I find 40+min efforts easier to test as your always above threshold on the 20min effort, but with a 40+min you have some time to find that 'threshold feeling' and don't have such a fine line to walk between a near-maximal effort and total implosion. 20km zwift TTs are also a great way to get the extra motivation to dig deep that I just cannot find in a test workout. Really enjoying following your journey this past year Benji. Health and fitness are things you can easily take for granted until they are taking from you and for me (18ish years in and still improving) cycling is a hobby that can last a lifetime.
Shouldn't be like that. Should feel 0-5 min its Ok I can do more, 5-10 it is stil OK but start to feels a bit hard, 10-15 now we are talking , my legs are hurting, 15-20 O god, I hope this will end soon, cant make it 1-2 min more.
@@stanf6315 maybe our definition of maximal effort is different. 😂. Power is constant for me, the sensations build over time. Walking the tightrope is difficult. Falling to one side is implosion, the other under performance. I may have a little experience with these.
Same logic as 10k runs being easier than 5k runs, as 5k is like the 20 min FTP test, and is above LT2, and is way more painful
I don't even need to watch the video to know it will be great. Keep it up :)
You should still watch it tho
I did and it was great as always
Wow, you actually gave me a brilliant idea: also try an FTP test! Zwift told me recently that my FTP increased from 191 to 197 w but I'm not certain that's correct so doing a 20 min effort should be a better way of finding out where my real FTP is. I also recommend Zwift, been riding there for 4 months and I'm already feeling the progress, in a similar way you call it: from a 💩 cyclist to a not-so-💩 cyclist. Great video!
I really enjoyed this video Benji. I’ve enjoyed watching your ProCycling Manager videos for years but had no idea you were embarking on your own IRL cycling development journey - so cool to see and best of luck to you! ❤
Everyone will finish an FTP ramp test and five minutes later will wonder if they could have gone another segment or two. We all seem to forget we were about to cough up a lung just a few minutes earlier. As for watching your watts, stop it! Find your comfortable cadence (90-93 for me) and watch that. The ERG mode on the bike will take care of getting you to your wattage as long as you keep your cadence steady.
Good job, Benji.
I'm sure others have said the same or similar, but with structure Benji a 50W increase is very achievable after 6 months of training! I started at 125 and ended up around 240 in 12 months. My only advice is get that cadence up above 90+ RPM for the duration of the test, its amazing how much easier those higher values are to achieve & hold once you can maintain that! good luck!
I've tested MANY times and can tell you that those two tests were close enough that some margin of error can be written off as pacing. Given that, you're very safe in splitting the numbers and putting your FTP at 195. Great job!!
Everybody has their vices:
Mine is watching other people do FTP test😂
You’re awesome Benji and we love your content, keep up the brilliant work.
Great job! One tip for ya. Try to keep your cadence in the 80-95 RPM range. This should help you push out some extra watts
That was some serious Arno The Kid cadence! Pure knee torture
Really looking forward to seeing this journey Benji! Keep up the great videos!
Great job so far and good luck with the next year. Excited to see how much progress you make!
Brilliant effort benji, 250 is completely achievable, can’t wait for your channel and content to scale up this year ❤
I've done my fair share of ftp tests and hard interval workouts. I thought it was dumb at first, but during the effort only speaking to yourself positively makes a big difference. Instead of saying my whole body hurts, I say my legs feel fresh and I feel strong. This trick has gotten me through some horrible workouts!
You're a legend Benji, never change (apart from starting a 20min effort 30W above FTP...).
Group ride in the UK when the weather improves?
haha respect for doing both tests! your thought-process during the 20min test was beautifully recognizable
Good job man, looking forward to following your progress! Good job identifying the spiral of death. I find trying to hold 85-90 rpm is a good goal for me, but you'll find your own sweet spot.
I embarked on a similar journey 10 months ago. I lost 15 kg overall so far (from 105 to 90). I did a first FTP test on zwift back in June and was at 201W and I just did another one this week and was at 261W.
Keep up the good work, you're inspiring many people!
I respect your commitment to marginal gain,s keeping the jersey zipped until the very end, even on a stationary bike.
I love this Benji! I’m on a similar journey of training so nice to watch this. I’ll do an alp with you if you need a pacer
I found the same problem with the ramp test - I overachieved by about 10% which then made my workouts way too hard! I manually set my FTP lower rather than kill myself on the 20 minute FTP - watching you do it I think I made the right decision 😅
Amazing Benji!! Keep going, inspiration! GOAT
Benji you absolute legend! Hats off to you for giving everything - wishing you luck on the ftp journey!
Nice Benji! Look forward to following the progress. Hope to catch up with you soon if your in the UK a little more 👏💪🏼
Whenever i do a FTP test, it feels like a tiny part of my soul dies
Good job and great vid! I don't even want to know how low my ftp is after barely riding this past winter.
Graaf, leuk concept en zeker leuk om te volgen omdat we je “kennen” van de podcast enzo, ge bent wel echt ne sympathieke kerel en hopelijk haal je u goals, ik duim in ieder geval!
Coming back to this. I find that my Ramp test on an indoor trainer is pretty much spot on with my
Outdoor 20min FTP value and my 20 min on the trainer is a few watts less. Every time.
Good watch… only thing I’d say is you need to focus on your cadence. You’ll find having faster legs you can carry more watts and it’ll feel more comfortable. Try and aim for somewhere between 90 to 100rpm… it’ll be hard to start, but once your legs get used to it and it becomes almost muscle memory you’ll definitely feel the improvement! Look forward to following your journey!
I'd argue that a 20mins test is also a better estimate because it is a better measure of mental resilience, especially when it comes to estimating FTP
I lack mental resilience, haha. 😂
@@BenjiNaesenTV Same lol, I'd take a ramp test over a 20mins test any time
I'm brand new to zwift, but chose ramp test, go till you quit fits my lack of mental resilience perfectly. It's not like you win for making your FTP high. You just get harder workouts. If we're not racing, we don't have to train like it's high school track.
@@stevek8829 ah yeah, although it does feel great to see that ftp increase over time!
Really cool video, keep doing what you’re doing 👍
Good to see Benji did what we all do and sacked off that ridiculous 3+2 Z5 and Z6 effort before the test!
Benj, was so glad you hit on the cadence straight away. Looked like you were really grinding from quite early on.
Awesome Benji !!! And nice test. Have done my first ramp test a few days ago too. I was not motivated enough for the 20 minutes stuff 😀But I think it's a more accurate result. On the other side I stopped the ramp test as my cadence dropped. Keep it up.
This is great. Love to see alll types dive into it.
Good job Benji! You should race Patrick on a cobbled secteur!
I think you definitely can achieve your goal if you work consistently at it. Losing 20 kg is no joke, and that took commitment. Get this done too!
First of all awesome videos really nice cutting, music etc. feels like u really reaching a new level. 💯
Also really relatable, I think everyone who did a 20min FTP Test is starting to question life decision at the end. 😂
And just a additional "fact" people who are better at the ramp test are most of the time a bit more punchy so good at anaerob stuff people doing better at the 20min Test are more aerobicly talented like climbers.
Keep it up!
That statement at the beginning “I fear no man… but that… that thing scares me” so damn accurate 😂
Great stuff Benji, very recognisable for many people, you do seem to improve fast. You'll again exceed your target if you ask me. 👍💪
Great job! One imported thing also to extract from this test is your FTHR and calculate your HR zone 2. Power:HR is an interesting metric to follow on zone 2 rides. Smash it!!
and also welcome to the breakaway app! glad you found it!
Great effort! On your current trajectory the gains will be awesome, you will fly up the alpe du zwift in no time
I hope you can achieve your goals, Benji! Good luck!
Well done Benji. Enjoying your solo content. Never done an FTP test but assume my 205 watts from Strava is a reasonable estimate, as Ive got 25,000 on there😂 I like to think its higher, as I fairly bomb along (30kph+) for long periods on the flat…but who knows?🤷♂️ Getting Zwift next winter, so Ill try then.
Depends on how aero you are, but 200W on road bike on flats should be around 30-32kph. In winter baloon jacket its around 30kph for me, in summer it gets faster. If you get on drops and have good geometry etc then it can be even more. But 205W for 30+kph seems reasonable.
Great video! over the last 6 months been more focused on fitness, both cardio and strength, which means I split my time roughly 50/50 between spinning and weightlifting, but this is motivating me to spend all my time spinning to get crazy cardio improvements 😅😅
I love this series. Keep it up!
I did these tests the other way round a few months ago. Thankfully I'm very used to doing 20 minute maximum efforts as that is my 5km run race pace so I paced fairly well, but still performed much better on the ramp test.
Great effort man, keep it up and 250 will be np!
Love this, way more entertaining than the guys who hit FTPs of 350w and you seem to suffer way more than they did 👍💪
💪
Great stuff Benji, would be nice to see the difference when focusing purely on your rpm for the ramp test - and for the 20’ one, try a voice over, you had some left in the tank there, otherwise you wouldn’t be able to talk ;-) says the couch coach - going for a purple unicorn 🦄 workout now
Let's keep getting after it brother!!!! Put that work in when nobody is looking, set small goals... SMASH THEM... move the goal post and SMASH THEM AGAIN!!!! 💪🏽
I did structured training like that for over a year and seen massive gains from that when I was at the end of that. Going from an abysmal 2.0W/kg to an unimpressive 2.8W/kg in that time with only 6h/week average training volume. :) So I think the 250W should be very much possible for you!
I've done several Zwift FTP tests of the 20min non-ramp version and had lots of issues with the cadence vs. power spiral. To the point of me not using any of them more and doing my own custom one by setting up a free ride on a TT track and manually targeting an effort level. That allows you to also switch between sitting and out of saddle when you get super uncomfortable as you do your 20 min. :) Zwift does track that 20min power for you anyway, even outside of the dedicated FTP tests. I'd recommend you try that!
Best of success with the journey!
Love it Benji, keep the Psych high. 💪❤️
I've found my best results from an FTP test come when I start at a lower power and ramp up by the end. If you start too high, the lactate builds too quickly, and your power starts to drop due to fatigue. Next time, Benji, try maintaining your current FTP for the first 5 minutes then try to ramp the average up by a few watts every 5 minutes. In this case, for example, start at 198W for 5 minutes, aim for 203 by 10 minutes, 208 by 15 minutes, 213 by 20 minutes or something similar.
Exactly this..pacing is crucial
Great !!! Also keep in mind that there's a difference between zwift and real life. FTP on zwift for me : 260w. Real life : 283w (both using same Assioma pedals). Questioning a pro coach about that : the bike is steady, and therefore, you can't pull the same force (using the arms, etc...). there's a 5 to 10% margin i suppose... and i'm verifying that all seasons...
Good on ya for getting into to it!
Awesome effort....If you continue riding you will surpass that 250 goal with ease! Btw. thank god you did the workout before the recent update^^
The AI FTP Test on TrainerRoad is worth the monthly price alone to skip these miserable tests and just keep riding. Looking forward to seeing your progress in 2023
golden cheetah does it for free
Love the suffering and your honest effort!
Good effort Benji
Well done👍
Hey dude, losing 20kg is ****ING epic, good work!
Great way to start your journey. Just remember the so call FTP is just a range not a number, some days you will feel that you can do more than that, and other days you will feel that number is way too high. The important thing is to have a reference and set your zones with that and then you can always use the zwift companion app to bias control and increase or decrease your workout's difficulty. Of course, don't go over 10% because then you are not doing the intended workout, but that is a good range. If you feel all the workouts are getting easier then you can do a new FTP test again and adjust accordingly
great effort - keep going!!!
Keep going Benji. Progress slowly and surely. 👊
Benji!
Fantastic video! Great job!
Good luck on your journey. I am 60 kg and my ftp is 250. I will soon finish back to fitness training plan. I am interested which training plan would be helpful to take on next. I also have a problem of riding on too low cadence. While the trainer says around 85 is optimal, around 60 feels natural to me.
Well done Benji!
Great suffering. It doesn’t get easier, you just get stronger. Maximal is always maximal. Enjoy the pain 💪
Try train more around 92-95 rpm and do your future threshold testing at this level.
I’d also recommend focusing on your heart rate when pacing the test. After some data analysis and further experience in testing, you will know where your FTHR sits and can use that as an indicator of your limit as well as your rate of perceived effort. By using an efficient cadence, threshold heart rate and perceived effort, you will have more guidance to make the pacing far easier.
Power and cadence tell you what and how you are producing power. Heart rate tells you what your body thinks feels about it. Heart rate is an important metric. Be sure to monitor it and it will help guide your efforts. It is also the best way to measure your aerobic growth. Power / Heart rate = Aerobic efficiency. As your EF rises, your aerobic base grows and you can start to add more intensity.
All the best with your journey to 250W.
You are capable of much more.
The pain face by Benji Naesen.
Good job!!!!!
Hahah I just finished an ftp test and I was cracking up my thoughts were the same as yours at half way.. my ftp test showed 40w lower than my ramp test!!
That was fun. As someone else said. I love cycling. I can watch it all day....😅😂
Nice work Benji! I would put these watts in another perspective. You should check the power to weight ratio.
If your FTP is 200W and your weight is 100kg you have 2 W/kg.
If you loose another 20 Kg, and your FTP will not increse (probably this will not happen) this number will be 2.5 w/kg. So you will be able to climb faster and go further. This is why categoris are defined in this way in zwift.
Plan is to use w/kg in the future but didn't want to put too much information in this video either, haha. It should be in a video soon. :)
cant wait to follow your progress
Nice app! It's the first yt advertisement that I'll actually use lol, so good instead of paying for training peaks to calculate that :'))
It isn't on Android though 😭😭
I'm afraid it's indeed currently on Apple App Store, but they told me they have an android release planned in their future roadmap.
Nice! why not set a goal in Watts per kg? Then you can combine the weight loss and becoming a better cyclist. Also, that is the metric that actually matters when going uphill.
Honestly, because I didnt want to another minute of explaining the concept of w/kg in this video yet. I will use it in the journey. :)
@@BenjiNaesenTVgoing solidly above 2,5 w/kg should be achievable in a year
Best of luck on your journey.
Good effort. You can do it. Consistency is key.
Yes Benji. Brilliant content
Got to love self torture :) Good going man.
Feel like I'm going to learn a ton about training properly watching this journey.
The outdoors where you are can't decide whether it's day or night 😂🤣
10/10 editing Benji!
Thaaanks 🤩
Great stuff Benji
I feel you when u said:"Why I'm doing this".
Im new in this Sport, i got my kickr Ride this month. My FTP was at 205, 2 weeks later i am already at 255 :) but to BE true, i just did workouts and climbs, suffering a lot. After my first race i instantly got promoted to group C 😅
Hi Benji, would love to see you attempt the alpe du Zwift in under an hour. Maybe you could invite subscribers to your session to help pace you ?
Under an hour is impossible for me, but I will attempt it this year, I promise. :)
I think I may try a 20 minute ftp as only ever done a ramp test. I thought aiming higher than your ramp test may make you fade to much and drop below your ramp test result but, I may find my result is lower too even with better pacing. I like the way it shows your average watts throughout that's potentially helpful.
I love this pain. 😂😂😂 good progress from letsplayer on PCM to cyclist. Good job.
I'd be dripping in sweat when doing a 20 minute test.
Aje nog kunt klappen ist nie lastig genoeg 😉. Goed bezig!!
Im not sure if its been said already but its pretty recommended to be spinning the pedals a lot faster so its not so much a strength test at 60rpm but a more cardio at like 80 rpm. So maybe shift down a few more gears if you have them available.
LOL as soon as i typed that you immediately mentioned it. Oh well.
Great effort Benji but no wonder that felt hard. You need to up your cadence immensely, 85-95 is recommended for a ftp test.
If you keep after your training you’ll look back at this number and laugh.
I just turned an FTP of 157 into 220 in 12 weeks using just the "back to fitness" program on zwift and some zone two riding in between. i'm almost a reasonable D class rider now :) good luck with your journey.