I couldn’t easily find this answer anywhere in the forum so I thought I would make a new post (sorry if this has already been covered).
I recently did a ramp test (Thursday) and utterly blew apart, getting an FTP not quite where I wanted it to be but decided to stick with that number (210 W) because it’s still early in the year and I figure I will eventually get back to my previous seasons FTP (256 W) with a little bit of work.
However, I recently (Saturday) did a short race (35 mins) which was pretty “hot” from start to finish and included at least one long’ish hill climb (8.5 mins). According to these results my average power for 20 mins was 254 W which would put me at 241 W for my FTP (a 31 W difference…)
My question is should I use this number since I was going all out (average HR was 182, max is 196 bpm), or should I consider this a “one off” since I was in a different mind space and revert to the ramp test number/redo my FTP test and maybe go with an 8 or 20 min test?
Or, more simply put, are FTP’s from race results valid?
If you did roughly a 60 minute TT then yes but a 20 minute effort is not an FTP test. A 20 minute test factors in a 5 minute burn out to allow it to be so short.
It’ll be a guide (as is FTP) but you’ll likely have a number that is too high aka vanity ftp.
I have a consistent 2-4% higher FTP on the bike rather than on the trainer. I think most people would have different FTPs between the two. Repeat the test if you think you need to. I’d do some workouts to to see how you feel after completing them. If you absolutely destroy a week of training, considering bumping up the FTP.
The numbers I hit indoors aren’t quite as nice as the ones I can hit outdoors, especially during a race. If you feel a 20 minute test would suit you better, then you should give it a try!