Have you ever finished a 20-minute FTP test and wondered if you had done it right? Had you really gone hard enough? Were you concerned you left something on the bike? Should you re-test? One of our athletes has provided a tongue-in-cheek look at how your FTP test should feel.
Don’t try this if you haven’t had a doctor give you clearance!
An FTP Test is Gonna Hurt!
If it was your first 20-minute FTP test, then there’s a 99.995% chance you went to easy. Threshold testing requires an understanding of what your upper limit truly is. A 20-minute FTP test should hurt a lot – a LOT more than you think it should. Then a LOT more than that – from that point, if you add some intensity you’ll almost be there.
By 5-7 minutes into the test, you should be angry at yourself because you just KNOW you went out WAY to hard and there’s simply no way you’ll make it to 20-minutes.
At 13-14 minutes you should fear your heart is about to explode, and your legs fall off.
As you go past 15-minutes, EVERY alarm bell in your body should be going off. The rational side of you says you’ve gotta finish so you don’t have to test again . . . because this is the most miserable thing you’ve ever done.
With two minutes to go there should be at least two different bodily fluids coming out of you and that will be the least of your concerns.
Somehow you made it to 20-minutes and you swear you will NEVER do that to yourself again . . . EVER.
If that’s how you felt during your 20-minute FTP test – you’re almost there. You almost went hard enough.
You should probably re-test.
Learning to Test
In all seriousness, testing is an acquired skill. A 20-minute test requires proper pacing and the ability to overcome discomfort – both physically and mentally. It takes time to learn how to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.
