Tour of London Winner

I won the three stage Short Tour of London (B stages, not the longer A stages). I stayed with the A group for 20 minutes in an FTP effort on stage 1 finishing in 8th, then 6th place stage 2. Then a good effort on stage 4. My training was a bit off lately because I didn't have a firm goal fixed in my mind.

Next, I'll target some Tour of Zwift stages. Yesterday got a QOM on the finishing sprint on the new Crit City course. Couldn't race this earlier due to Tour stages. 3 and 5 left me exhausted.

World Champion Road Race Results

In addition to the time trial world championships, Zwift also has road races this weekend.

Women's Results:
1. Alexandra Nohlis  1:06.58
2. Teri Cashmore       1:08.49 (no strava)
3.Kristen Bitter          1:08.50
4 Ruth Vickers           1:11.01
5 Sara Wets                1:11.54

Turnout was extremely low. Zwift, why can't you do better at promotion?

Mens Championship road Race:
1 Lionel Vujasin 2:15.26
2 Darius Zarbiba 2:17.06
3 Igor Kopse       2:17.40

Nobody else really came close to the times from this race.

Academy 2019

Well, time to check my numbers, now that the Academy is drawing to a close.
Here's a snapshot I took:

How did I do compared to last year? First, let me say that I was using the program to peak for the time trial race. So, I did the workouts and then concentrated on using the speed I built to focus on endurance. My forty minute was only 1 watt less than my thirty minute in that race. Both 30 and 40 minute bests were all time bests. Yeah. My hour was 241 compared to 249 in a race 2/18 against Beth. Racing beats training every time especially when it is neck and neck to the finish. Looks like I got the best 30 second sprint? (in watts, just missed it in w/kg)

What's next? Don't know. I'm not doing the long women's elite road race, especially after how tired I am from that all out time trial effort. I need a goal and a time. Unfortunately, Zwift often doesn't release info until just before an event. The lead up to Yorkshire was just okay. They didn't really say much. And the Championships was hardly mentioned at all. There's a random prize for those who ride 290 km during Yorkshire, which I did just on that chance. So, semi-finals are up Monday October 14 and I will probably try to compete if not selected. I'm looking for ninth place, lol. Not sure if the races are top ten only or open to all? I'll probably be at work like last year

Zwift World Championship Time Trial Championships

It's been a few weeks since I've written. Why? I posted most of my workouts but didn't want to draw too much attention that I was training to defend my World's Time Trial title from last year. It was a huge ask at 30 km of hills. Actually, the hills are in my favor as they present themselves as intervals with 30 seconds or so of rest.

I trained on the Yorkshire course as soon as it opened. Then I had to change with only a week's notice that the course would be the Pump 8 course and not two laps of Harrogate circuit. I had a good run in practice, then a race. I followed it with a long steady Alp and readied myself for the day.

I knew my limits and felt great, so I went hard all the way. Maybe the opening was a little soft for the first five minutes, but it is a long race and I was saving my strength for the many hills to come. I averaged 260 watts, an all time record for me! My normalized power was 273 at 4.0 w/kg. I can't even remember how hard I went at the very finish. By then, I knew I had done better than expected. My time was about 48:30 but it's always placed higher. I had an official 48:52. Better than my 50:09 and my 50:39 in practice. I did both hills at about 275-280 and had a 3:13 and a 2:57.

I had gone into the race blind, so I was eager to see the past results....and I saw I had the QOM for the race course! All I had to do was survive in the lead for four more events and I would repeat as the winner. I didn't see any big hitters (over 4 w/kg avg). I got up at 2:30 to see the results of the last race. There was a second place finisher. I did the near impossible. I knew it last night. I knew I had it.

I'll watch the men's races tonight and add the finalists. Here's the official women's results:

2019 Women's Elite Time Trial World Championships:

1 Zee Kryder          48:52
2 Miho Shina          49:47
3 Joy Murphy          50:58
4 Rhianon Norton    51:58
5 Tasha                    52:43 (no Strava)
6 Emma Tod            53:05
7 Gabrielle Pelchat  53:16
8 Sophee Coyne      53:25
9 Claire Joyce          53:39
10 Maaaike Van der Plas 54:42

Men's Elite Time Trial

1. Sean Vintin       1:12:30

2 Shabi Blaowah  1:14:52

3. Jesper Pihl        1:14:58

4 YHM                 1:15:13

5 Fordy                 1:15:16

6 WGKS               1:15:19

7 Ed Ray              1:15:45

(Second place not verified)

Race 3

Today's race was a big challenge, longer than I realized. It was almost three laps of flat with the volcano climb stuck at the end. Rhianna Norton tore off early while I stayed behind. The B group was too slow and lost ground even when I was riding solo. So both of us just rode our own time trial.  I was happy with the strength I had to finish on the climb. I lost ten - fifteen seconds a lap. I had it at 40 seconds but I still lost 12 seconds on the climb. I hope Norton goes to the big show. She's got the power for it. I knew if I went out fast, she would either burn me or simply tire me out. Although I probably could have just sat on her wheel entirely. Maybe another day, another course. Still an enjoyable ride. Light attendance, surprising. Gonna long on in a minute and see what I have unlocked (paint job?)
Now, when are we doing those real time trials? Italy and the Pancake Desert?

Week Three

Had a great hour effort that counted as week 2 (first week was Monday-Monday?). It was a struggle to keep going but after 45 minutes, the finish was in sight and I perked up. I did the Alp in 55 minutes, so I had to make a u-turn at corner 1 and re-cross the finish line for 60 minutes.

I also did my final workout #6 which wasn't too hard as I skipped the ten minute at threshold and just rode the higher levels. It was a warm-up for the Friday night time trials on Tempus. I did a PR on the 16 km course and matched my ftp at 266. Very happy with my hot start for 10 minutes. (My previous 20 minute pace that I'm almost back up to) The guy who finished in 5th (I was 4th) gave me a carrot for the first half. I think he was trying to stay ahead until I finally passed, then he slowed down.

Now I have to do four events to get the bike I think which means the two extra are not counted? So I am taking them today. Sunday will be the long Volcano After party race. Then I can finish the Academy races anytime but I graduated yesterday so I can start to focus on Yorkshire. Zwift is only giving us three weeks? How do they fall behind schedule with all of that money. Two weeks late. (well it was waiting on the bug fixes I guess)

Week Two

Feeling good about my Academy into week two. I have to run through workouts 4 and 6 which seem straight out maybe a bit of sprinting on 6. Monday will be four min max and probably Wed race on volcano lap. That leaves Friday for double workout to graduate.

Still want to redo one minute and 20 second efforts. Need a good hour in also, on the Alp. I should do a two minute and 6 minute effort as well as a full assault on ftp-20 minute effort. Time for it all? We will see. Nothing scheduled too far ahead. Still waiting on time trial and Harrogate.

Had a broken chain link Sunday (kept hearing and feeling a 'Clink'). Got it patched today. Need a new one soon.

Race 2

Two for two. A win for a number of unusual reasons. I felt like a flier, good legs, and full of java. I desperately wanted to avoid peaks in covering attacks or worse, a slow twenty minutes of drafting before a big sprint.

It was a small field with no big names that I saw. So, I decided I would go out hard. Lea Milleu came with me and helped in the first two minutes. I did 300 watts for those first two minutes. From a field of 16 or 20, we gapped a group of 8 riders. It was only 5-7 seconds at first, but it would go up about 15 seconds in that first of six laps. From there, I pushed hard especially on the kick before the sprint line. I hoped that I would build a gap of a minute and the chase would slow. I think we all kept the pace going. Two against eight is a tough call. Mostly, Lea stopped working with me and let me force the pace. (Which I was happy to do. At least I would get a second to add to my previous win.)

We added about 15 seconds a lap which is good. Going into the last lap with a minute and a half, I slowed to catch my breath for the sprint finish. I wanted to pop off right before the hill but I went just a tad early and was hurting bad on the hill. I was flailing a bit at the crest but knew I could hold the gap to the line. Only after the finish did I realize she didn't cross the line. I wonder if she dropped her chain as she finished two minutes later in fifth after such a long battle. I was afraid she might tear off real early and I was too tired for a kilometer chase. So for me, an early attack seemed best, even if I lost. Maybe Lea will want a rematch. She's certainly earned it.

I mostly want to do a time trial so I can see how my times compare to the A list (Baldi, Whitelaw, and all the big names.) But, I can't complain a bit today.

Week Two

Tuesday did workout number two with flying colors under great legs today. A bit sore but felt fast. Had no trouble doing 260 for last 10 miutes. Then I did a 3 second sprint or five. Then, before I cooled down, I jumped into a group workout and hit an early interval of 510 for one minute for a 7.5 which beat the previous 7.4 someone had posted. (an impossible? 8 w/kg got posted later. Sorry, don't believe that some 45 kg rider did 400 watts or so. There's no filter for excessive wattage, esp. z-power stats. Why not show the top 10 for us? The coaches see the top 20. anyways, 1200 calories burned and an extra match or two. But, I am coming around esp in strength. Only a few watts short of PR for 10 seconds today. Gotta try a two minute max soon too. Thursday is a scheduled race.

Race 1

Winner! I felt good but not great. Early race on a course I haven't raced in a long time.
A field of 30 started out at a moderate pace, mostly orange instead of red. We had ten of us after splitting the field and continued to that first climb leading to the Classique course lap. I stayed out front and mostly behind someone who hit it hard then faded. but, we ran off with a third splitting the ten up. by the 1 km to go, we had our fourth and I upped the pace now that we had the right combo. Two others, kicked it up before the start line and we had a group of six with a 12 second gap. We gradually took it to 30 seconds, then a minute by the next lap. (It really is only half that time in real time but only, of course, if we were to stand still.)

The only punch we had was the small hill, where I go strongest. The third lap, I was losing my heart rate and it was at threshold (160 for an old-timer like me). the fourth lap, everyone kind of slowed. I hit the hill hard but let someone ahead so I could draft in case someone attacked. again, everyone clawed their way back. I only had a feather which won't help me much in a sprint (1/2 a w/kg is barely noticeable) I waited until 400 meters to go then hit it hardest the last 300. I was a bit soft the last 100 but enough to stay ahead of Kim Bitter.
Zwift list said 1 Kryder, 2 Bitter, 3 Edqvist 4 Rosseland.
ZPower put up 1 Kryder, 2 Van der Plas 3 Watts, 4 Bitter, 5 Edqvist, 6 Rosseland
Later Zwift said 1 Kryder,2 Plas, 3 Watts, 4 Bitter
Were they invisible? I only remember Bitter on my wheel and she took the green jersey by drafting me. I won by half a wheel . It was awesome to feel the old racing spark. I wouldn't have won a 6 lap but 3 or 4 was doable at 41:17. I averaged a 146 which was deemed a 150 normalized power. So again, low ftp 250, 251, 255 avg 252.

strava of race with pictures.

Zwift Women's Academy Week One

Got the best of the one minute so far. I got a 499 which is 7.3 where second place is at 6.7 but few have probably done the workout #5. Besides, I am at 90% peak. Last week I was at 855, so I am coming along fairly good. My FTP is at 250 rather than 265. I hope to hit 260 this month if all goes well. Not a part of competition but certainly part of the purpose.

Here's my day 2 graph.

PS Wattage of someone is wrong here, showing something other. Doubt they can find it to correct but nobody but top two or three in the world can do some of these numbers, yet alone in a single ride.

Well, at the end of the week and it looks like we are all chasing 'guy' wattage. Just doesn't look right. Who could do 2 minutes at 500 watts? Anyway, I had top 20 and 30 for a day. But, alas, someone beat my one minute by a hair and my 20 and 30 seemed to finish top 10 at least from group workouts of the day. I'm happy with that. I probably one of the few who can pace it just right from years of practice.

Who You Gonna Call? Ghost Chasers

Today I'm going to share different ways to set-up and use your ghost. The main method is 1.Go as fast as you possibly can. Then 2, Go again only faster. Good luck beating your ghost as it will get exponentially harder. And if you set your PR in a race while drafting, you may find it impossible to beat that ride on a solo effort.

Who is your ghost? I read you should name yours, so I named mine...

SETTINGS AND EQUIPMENT

FIGURE 8
A good training method is to pick a course that you don't regularly race on. I use Tempus Fugit a lot, so I may pick the Figure 8 course for this. I will ride it to establish a base mark. Then I will go at it trying to match my ghost only at 1 or 2 kg heavier.

VOLCANO CLIMB
Some will start with a time trial bike, then move to a slower bike. First I do this course on my Zwift Time Trial bike. Let's say I finish at 35:00. Now, I race McFly riding my Trek Madone. Matching McFly on a slower road bike means technically I rode 35 seconds faster. Third Effort is on a Zwift Steel Bike which is 51 seconds slower. This way I can ride side by side with McFly and still be getting a better workout. After all, what is the point of a ghost if you leave them far behind?

ALP d' ZWIFT
A similar method is to ride your favorite climbing course, like the Alp with various bicycles. In this case, I will start with the slowest, the Buffalo (bargain priced) and gradually choose faster bikes. I will try to get just a bit faster each ride. I'll have confidence I can beat Mcfly because I have this little edge to motivate me. Here's a sample of bikes I will be using and their times at 4 w/kg:

• Buffalo bike        50:49
• Zwift Time Trial    50:29
• Zwift Steel          49:57
• Zwift Aero           49:15
• Edmonda            48:59

Riding Methods

LONDON LOOP
I do this at a steady even effort under FTP, maybe right between the green and the yellow zones on the graph. Second Effort is a small burst of speed at the start to get slightly ahead ( 3 seconds or so) and then hard press on the climb and 30 second sprint at the end before the banner. Third Effort is a hard start (like Zwift races) for a full minute getting a decent gap (10 or 15 seconds), then hold it so the gap stays steady. Now blast that Box Hill and jump at the one minute to go mark Remember, McFly will attack hard at the 30 seconds to go mark. Can you power all the way to the finish?

BOLOGNA
This ghost is a great learning tool to show how you need to pace your effort and use your strength on the hill. On a Tron bike at 4 w/kg the first 6 km of mostly flat Bologna course was 8:49 with 9:23 up that darn hill for an 18:12 total time.

Now after your steady effort ride, ghost that with your second effort. The sample ride was 270 watts for the first 6 km and then a higher 330 watts on the hill. The flat was slower at 9:12 (23 seconds behind). But the climb landed at 8:36 (saving 47 seconds!) for a total time of 17:46. The second effort may average about 300 watts but was 26 seconds faster than that first effort.

Third effort can attempt a slightly faster start. But have you saved enough energy to beat McFly on the last part of the climb? This will truly teach you how to race this course. You will be able to apply it towards any hilly course. But wait, there's one more.

TICK TOCK
Intervals. Your first effort will have a few mid-paced sprints. Go extra hard for 20 to 30 seconds and recover back to main pace. Don't soft pedal, remember this is more of a break away effort and you must maintain a good pace. Try one for every five minutes of the course  If you go too hard, your speed will suffer too much while you struggle to recover.

Second Effort is more steady. Let McFly get ahead on that sprint. When that burst is over raise your pace just a bit and see how long it takes you to recapture your ghost. These slightly above FTP intervals (like an Over/Under Workout) will be faster than a steady effort. You will eventually find the right pattern that suits you, be it 5 seconds or 30. You'll learn how to pick up the pace for short bursts, a must in races.

Goals and Update

Sorry for not writing anything in a long time. i've been experimenting with peaking and resting and peaking (re-peaking?).Things have gone well, except first I got distracted by tour of Watopia and Mixtape Challenges. I did peak twice especially two weeks ago, then got very ill.

My peak effort was suppose to be an FTP effort to finally make the 4.0 club, the A racer. My last workout went overboard. I was on a super day, having planned my workouts well. My efforts was for my Zwift Challenge. I call it the Five World Challenge.It is the shortest lap on each of the five world maps. Each is done with a five minute cooldown and a five minute warm-up. I think I went about 3 minutes over at the end because I was so unfamiliar with the LaGuardia loop, which starts and ends with the sprint line. You can do them in any order and either forward or reverse. It must be done on a time trial bike to prevent drafting advantages.

I did Richmond Flat, Innsbruckring, Classique, Volcano lap, and the shortest last, LaGuardia. I had practiced this a few times trying to gauge how much effort for each event. I must say, I went wild in the first three and finished the last two just above last time but suffered immensely.

Richmond 7:00
Innsbrukring 12:49
London 7:38
Watopia 5:37
New York 3:44

So my goals are to do fairly good for my third ZWAcademy. I hope there is finally a time trial race so we can compare ourselves to the others. In standard races, you have to be in the one with largest attendance and stay with the group in order to finish with a fast time. Ride a small race and it is mostly a solo or dual effort which is a lot slower. The stats were helpful but can't really weed out the WD's. The person with the highest 7 - 20 minutes or so was way above elite levels. So whoever was the actual highest went unnoticed and unaccredited. I would like to repeat as the one minute champion, but again, there is nothing official. Would love to get top 10 or 20 in a time trial event.

My main goal is to train from June through September, peaking in late July and to my best for the September 24th world championship time trial and defend my jersey as best I can. I assume it will take place on the soon to be released Harrogate course, so I am training with that profile in mind. I run the flat lap into the volcano climb and continue on the flat course until turning onto the reverse kom, finishing at the top line. Once the course is released, I will train night and day on it. I also plan to race the same length of time (50 minutes or so) on the Tempus course to measure my effort on a steady effort.(I actually do better on a hilly course as I am a powerful interval rider and a strong finisher. Last year I won by a final one minute effort with the second place racer fading from early efforts, going very fast on the first lap. I was still behind by 2 seconds with 2 km to go but gained 6 seconds or so at the end...

Mostly, I need to avoid distractions and prevent over-training. Wish me well and thanks for following my journey.

Nationals 2019

Japan was up first. Hiroshi Kikuchi took the men's title and Kiriko Fuchigami repeated as the women's winner.

In Korea, Kim Hyeonseung took the men's title with Seonhae Oh taking the women's title.

In Norway, Vidar Mehl beat a field of 6 men and Kristin Falck repeated in the women's race.

In Denmark, Aleksej Calmann beat a field sprint of 25 which included defending champ Soren Bay to take the men's title while Louise Houbak was another women's repeat champion.

In Sweden "Sam" won the sprint of 14 men and Cecilia Hansen was yet another repeat women's champion.

In France, Germain Omnes beat matthew Drujon and nine others to win the men's title. Audrey Laundier was the repeating women's winner.

The Dutch (Netherlands) had Niels Beverborg beating a field of 16 that included Jokim Plujmers and "Hannibal" took the women's win.

Belgium had the only men's repeat winner with Michael Apers winning with Terry Fremineur winning a very small women's field.

Poland had Lukasz Goralik win with "Sonia" winning the women's field.

Germany had men's winner Ingo Reichart and women's winner Eva Buchholz as the sixth women's defending champion.

In Switzerland, Francois Coppex took the men's title with Melanie Maurel taking the women's race.

Canada had a sprint of 27 men with Warren Mur taking the honors and Stephanie Ossenbrink took the women's race.

The United States saw Holden Corneau beat Adam Zimmerman and 23 others in the men's race. In the women's event, Angela Pitzer used an aero power-up to take the win with Claudia Behring staying with the lead group for over 40 kilometers before dropping out of the race with an apparent problem.

The British Nationals was a bit tricky. Steve Young and Illi Gardner took the race wins. However, this was only a qualifier and not the final itself. Kim Little can still repeat as champion, having finished in the top ten positions. Casey Baldi did not appear in this year's event.

The British National Final race will be announced soon.
All winners are still verifying at this time and will be officially announced Monday.
Jerseys will be presented with next week's update.

EDIT UPDATE:
wow how things changed this year. It took weeks as opposed to a few days to finalize the winners. A few races went to second, third, and even a fourth place to declare the Zwift winner. In Korea, all women did not qualify. In Poland, almost 300 men and women all were "Unqualified" as to a license. Therefor, no winners were declared. I asked the Polish cycling organization about this but still no response. Didn't really expect one.
Here's a link to official results that we published on ZI: https://zwiftinsider.com/zwift-nats-results-2019/
Brit winners were Cameron Jeffers (a 12th place finisher) and Rosamund Bradley (original winner not present)

It was an incredibly long hard race for the women, way too long imo. A lot of men's races finished as sprints (10-28 racers). This took out the best rider scenario and pushed it to most cagey sprinter (lucky). I think virtually every winner did so with an aero power-up.

Prep for Nationals

I was extremely disappointed to see Watopia instead of the Innsbruck course Zwift discussed for Nationals. I had been practicing the course. I stated last year in an interview that I appreciated the jersey and looked forward to passing it on. I had planned on riding a lap of honor and letting the field go. (I expect a much larger turn-out this year than the 8 of us last year). I also considered racing the USA even if I had little chance of beating Claudi B. I kinda bailed on that idea when I saw the brutal long course at 60 km. Might I ride it just to see how the first lap would go? Still undecided. I am really slow after 90 minutes. Really bad. 45 minutes is about my race limit as far as decent wattage is considered.75 minutes is my absolute limit. This race will be about ten minutes short of two hours for me.

I raced the Vox Figure 8 course the week before nationals and did fairly well, winning my race. I wanted to see how I stacked up against the other champs, most of which are at a higher level. (and yes, some who finished 5th in their race were faster than me apples and oranges). But then one national race had only 2 people. I still respect them. It isn't their fault. I kept telling Zwift they are not promoting their events enough. I wouldn't have won the World time trial if the heavy hitters had thought enough to show up. That's partly the reason I didn't feature the event in Zwift Insider. Selfish I know. So, my two 'biggest' wins don't make me feel special or give me bragging rights.

Here's the Vox results:
M Wilkinson 43:08
C Behring     45:14
E Buchholz   45:58
Z Kryder       46:10
C Hansen      46:16
L Houbak      46:33
L Dalley        49:01
Keep in mind these were different event times and that with double draft, race times are thrown off by the size of the field. If you are in a pack of ten, your speed will be much faster than a group of 2 or 3.

I've avoided over training by cutting way back on races, doing shorter events, and adding an extra rest day after super hard efforts. I burnt out before the end of the Academy again and I was exhausted after the world championships. (But not as bad as 2017 Academy and last February when I raced every Kiss Crit and CVR race series for 8 or 10 weeks in a row.) I came this close to the semi's in 17. But had I made it, it would have been a sad outcome. I only recently did those workouts. I just was completely exhausted. So much so I went to the doctor. It was awful. It took a long time to recover.

For me, races have always been about fun, and well that extra surge it gives you and your training. I love sprint finishes and feel blah about finishing 30 seconds behind and 30 seconds ahead, whether it is for 17th place or 109th doesn't really matter. I have a good 30 to 60 second effort. I'm not a true 10 second sprinter (those 15-17 w/kg gals). I can't do the same effort at the end of a long race like I can on a solo workout effort for max. level. I did snag the best one minute effort of the ZWA. I was just told that I have a 789 best effort (not a race finish but a group workout max effort) compared to a 724 from someone selected for the all star team, Brit.I think I just barely out sprinted her a year ago or so. But she has 11.8 w/kg and Cassie has 12 w/kg to my 11.6, so that's why 'big' numbers don't tell the whole story.

I'm looking forward to the big races. Cassie vs. Rachael. And the US event. Maybe K Tracy will enter or Katie V for that matter. I just don't want to see an easy walk away. Was there any doubt that Whitelaw would take off the front and stay away the entire race? Pro level racers are certainly welcome. But they do make it impossible for the rest of us. Well, we can always dream. But, the old days of Zwift are gone like those blue ghosts.

What's next? The Dropz store (finally my disc wheel), a watopia expansion, and eventually a shadow rider of your personal best, which may (may) only be available for tt efforts. The next update is scheduled for March 4th I think, give or take a few days. I would love to see different races, like the jungle circuit starting at the line instead of the pier and over the steep hill. Epic or Tower finishes. And why do we call it the 'extra climb' instead of the radio tower now??? dumb idea. I thought the New York course was ok. But the high course was designed for richmond and then scrapped. The courses are confusing and my favorite LaGuardia must be done with manual turns?? Please, spend the money on our experience, not simply spending it on advertising. (a million ads on YouTube??)

How about better avatars. We all look so similar. Custom license plates? Helmet stickers? Choose your own body width? Lol. rant over. Have fun y'all.

ZI

Testing Time

When was the last time you tested yourself? It's a good idea to pick a testing strategy early in your winter training and repeat it during your approach to your main racing season. All workouts with power meters are usually based on your FTP number.

What is FTP?
Functional Threshold Power is the determined number of watts you can do for an hour at a full effort. Training levels are then established by a percentage of your FTP number.

Theoretically, the test should be a sixty minute all out test. Except that few riders could follow this protocol successfully. It is considered the hardest mental discipline in cycling. You might get an estimate from a race lasting sixty minutes or more. However, either use a flat course or ride uphill (like the Alp on Zwift). The only other option is to run a Zwift race for this effort and continue to push your watts downhill without coasting.

Estimated FTP Tests

The golden standard is a twenty minute test. There are two official FTP tests in your Zwift workout selection. Both of these tests feature a twenty minute section that will show on screen the current average wattage. This is most helpful when repeating the test or when a specific target is your approach.

Another approach is two eight minute intervals. This is a standard used by CTS Training and Trainer Road. Chris Carmichael recommends this as the best test for novices. CTS have a complete explanation on their website : https://trainright.com/cts-field-test-why-eight-minutes-not-20/. Carmichael Training Systems are very knowledgeable and respected. Basically, after a long warm-up, start with a fast yet increasing tempo for the first minute, ride steady for six minutes, and put in a full minute of extra power to conclude. After resting for ten minutes, repeat the eight minute interval. Your aim is to have the first be your more powerful effort with the second effort equal or 95% of the first effort's wattage. A repeat of the test is later done to see if you can ride the second effort to match the first, rather than going harder in the first interval. CTS says a stronger second effort on the first test usually indicates a poor warm-up.

Zwift Academy used the two 12 minute interval approach. Simply open the Zwift 2018 Academy Semi Final workouts and choose this test. Each 12 minute interval will show your average during your effort. Today's Plan Coaches say that the first 12 minute effort should be a target to reach when planning a 20 minute test, after several weeks of targeted training. https://www.todaysplan.com.au/. They have worked with Zwift during the Zwift Academy competitions, providing workouts throughout.

The Ramp test is a short and sweet approach. Often called a Step Test. It is increasing wattage until failure, that's the sweet part. Shane Miller has set up one for you. There's a video on his page which will explain it and help you do the math afterward. Lama's Step Test. These step tests differ from coach to coach. Miller uses two and a half minute sections. Others use four minutes. The most accurate I have found is the Sisyphus Step Test. It is done in one minute increases of 5 watts (16 to 18 minutes), rest, one minute increases of 10 watts (8 or 9 minutes), rest, and finally one minute increases of 20 watts (4 to 6 minutes). The results are averaged and your FTP should be 90%.

For the bold and serious, Full Frontal is the best way to test and torture yourself at the same time. Here is GCN's Dan Lloyd doing the test to start his ten week get-into-shape training. Video-How Fit Can Dan Get? This is a Sufferfest innovation. To do it, there are two five second sprints, a five minute maximal effort, a twenty minute endurance effort aimed at your current FTP number, followed by an all-out one minute test. Try it on the light side first, to gain experience before an full-powered assault. It is as hard as they say, intense. You won't want to repeat it too often. Even experienced cyclists have failed to finish this hour of agony.

To do the Full Frontal on Zwift, I recommend using two of the tests from the 2018 Zwift Academy; Extensive Anaerobic One Minute and Max Aerobic Four Minute. Hit the 'tab' button to skip to the section just before the test. Use the tests for a full four minute effort, the twenty minute FTP test, and the one minute effort. Don't forget your five second sprints.

Love them or hate them, these tests yield reliable answers to your fitness level as expressed in watts. For best results, don't test too often. Use several weeks of training to reach your next goals. Ride on!

ZI

DIY Training Camp

Maybe you don't have the time or resources to head to Mallorca for a week (or Calpe for you Cameron watchers). There are still Zwifty ways to have a high training volume week that will start off your season preparations with a bang.

Training camp is a base-building week. However, to start making improvements you need more training stress, not just more hours or miles. What sort of training stress do you do now? On Zwift or Strava, simply add up your TSS scores for the weeks prior to camp. The average weekly total should help you determine how much more you are capable of for a full week. Plan to increase your TSS total for this week by 50 to 100%. You will need to have endurance stress and VO2 Max efforts, generally intense 3 to 8 minute intervals. Some coaches include shorter intervals as well as sprints. You need to weigh whether sprinting is part of your weekly routine or early season goals.

Zwift It Up

Here's a few suggestions:
1. Combine Zwift with some winter challenges such as cross-country skiing or steep hill hikes.

2. Plan a training camp weekend. Include a base effort (sweet spot levels are at your FTP or slightly under) and an interval session on the first day. Do a fairly long workout on the second day, perhaps The Four Horsemen or the Pretzel on Watopia.

3. Fire up your engines an entire week for the complete experience. Train for two consecutive days and rest on the third. Sunday and Monday-train, Tuesday rest, Wednesday and Thursday- train, Friday- rest, Saturday and Sunday- train. Follow it up with a massage. Think of an early morning session before work and a longer session after work on your training days.

Workout selection should be done in advance. There are many workouts to choose from on Zwift. You can pick out of this selection from Tailwind Coaching.  https://tailwind-coaching.com/zwift-workouts/ I'm sure they would love to help you further as well. Base workouts are Early Base Grab Bag, Aerobic Round Robin, and ME Specialty. Interval workouts are Over Unders, Minute Man, and Three + Thirty.

Here's a nice week of training based on the Zwift Coaches Challenge:
 https://whatsonzwift.com/workouts/coaches-challenge/#coaches-challenge.

Group workouts on Zwift can help keep your motivation going. Working as a team definitely has advantages. You might also search for group rides among the many Zwift groups on Facebook. One example is https://www.facebook.com/groups/ZwiftRideOn4Health. Feel free to plug your groups in the comments below.

Set a date soon. Spring is coming.