Ramp Test Tips & Tricks

Awesome. Thanks for the info

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I’ve just done my third ramp test and noticed something interesting when comparing to my previous two tests.

My FTP has increased every time, but in the first two ramp tests my HR was 2-3 beats from my max HR at failure (191 and 192). Today my FTP increased from 319 to 328, however my HR at failure was only 187. Can I read anything into this?

Nope. To much variability in a single HR reading

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You’re fitter? Probably can’t read anything into a single event, but may be interesting to keep track of. I had a similar experience. Ramp Test 2 months ago I found a “new” max HR I didn’t know I had at 185 (FTP 250). Ramp Test 1 month ago I found a “newer” max HR I didn’t know I had at 189 (FTP 265). Then, yesterday’s Ramp Test (FTP 287) my heart rate only got up to 185. What does it all mean?:man_shrugging:

I was supposed to test yesterday. For some reason on this test, which is like my 3rd or 4th, I’m really dreading it! Gonna do it tomorrow. At 5am! Ouch!
-Hugh
(my blog: exprosays.blogspot.com)

KInda like any test or race, there will probably always be some nerves. Good in ways, but don’t let i build in than it is… a simple test set the start of your next step in development.

Man, I just cannot take the ramp test at 5am. My training sessions are normally early and I can struggle through them. But, I never feel stellar at 5am and can’t seem to give the test a good go. So, lesson learned. Anytime I have the test scheduled during the week I’m moving it to Saturday when I’m rested, recovered, and ready to give it a good wallop!
-Hugh
(my blog: ex-prosays.blogspot.com)

If you’re indeed “struggling through them” then doing a ramp test when you’re fresher will only make your 5am training sessions harder.

It makes more sense to test at the same time you train to make sure the levels are set correctly. That’s what I do anyway.

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Are there any YouTube clips of pros doing full ramp /ftp tests?

It would be cool to try to “keep up” with Sagan or Nibali :sweat_smile:

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Good point!
-Hugh
(my blog: ex-prosays.blogspot.com)

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That would only work for erg-mode trainers. You can’t really do a steady power ramp-up in resistance mode, it means changing cadence all the time.

I train early as well (5h30), and without eating before - but I do my ramp tests in the same conditions, so everything is coherent.

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I’d be keen to know what the TR team think of this. I tend to train fasted (not intentionally to lose weight, but because of time and being too early to eat) but race fuelled, so I am keen to know when the ramp test should take place…

At exactly the same time you do you training.

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I agree with the logic, but it doesn’t have to be the case for every rider.

Personally, I do my ramp tests in the evening but do the 2/3 of my TR workouts in the morning and never felt that my FTP was too high for the whole training phase.

In Base I failed one on a last interval (didn’t have a fan back then, rookie mistake) and one midway the training in Build (mental issue from every day life not so much training, would’ve failed the same workout in the evening).

But I couldn’t see myself getting the same result on a ramp test in the morning as I get in the evening.

If after an evening ramp test the morning workouts are too hard it might also be due to other factors, such as sleep and or nutrition the night before etc.
I wouldn’t immediately jump to a morning ramp test, I would see if I can make them work better by improving on other factors first and if that doesn’t help do a morning ramp test.

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But what would be the logic for doing a ramp test in the evening when your training takes place in the morning?

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Hehe I know it’s a contradiction and until I do a ramp test in the morning to confirm, my logic is that I would be training at lower FTP and get less out of the training if didn’t do the ramp test in the evening.

But that all stands/falls with whether or not I truly get a lower FTP on a morning ramp tests as I am assuming now.

I would take a ramp test in the morning if I wasn’t able to complete the morning workouts with the FTP set in the evening. But for now I am doing fine and see no need in changing this.

I do want to mention that I am on LV plan, where I add two gym sessions and an outdoor Z2/Z3 ride to. Perhaps I wouldn’t be able to do the morning exercises on the evening FTP if I were on a MV or HV plan.

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I think this is important, in general terms if you train in the morning then you should test in the morning, that is solid advice for most cases and I don’t think there is a compelling argument to move away from that.

However, if an alternative approach works for you then great. We are all outliers in some area (I’m becoming convinced I am more efficient at slightly lower cadences) and its important to recognise those areas, both positive and negative, and adapt accordingly.

there is a final point, ego. It just needs to be put out there. Despite everyone knowing that within TR your FTP is just used as a reference point, if ‘we’ think that by testing at a certain time of day we can get a higher FTP then there is a lot of temptation to do that, despite the fact that it may be counter productive to training.

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I did my second ramp test the other day. Afterwards I felt that the point at which I bailed was decided by psychological as much as physical factors - I was swimming around in a sea of pain, without anything particular to swim towards. Knew I was going to have to give up soon and didn’t have a specific target, so just stopped, but felt if I’d had something to push me, I could have hung on for longer.

Then I came on here and read about the 19:30 thing - that was exactly what I needed! I bailed at 20:13. Next time I’ll be aiming for 20:30, and see if I can hang on till 21:00…

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Exactly… and when you get to 21:00, hang on until 21:15, then when you get there, hang on till 21:30…you get the idea… Some people do better with a carrot dangling in front of them, me included…

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