Kinda inspired by the "5 W/kg project" thread, I found a "FTW (Power) Test" on the bike at the gym (a Matrix bike at a Pure Gym). It started easy enough, making me ride at 75 of its watts, around every 4 minutes it upp'd the watts by another 25 until I ran out of legs, then at the end gave me my FTP wattage.
But does anyone know if this score is in any way near true as compared to the more usual way of testing my FTP by doing a couple of 20-minute hard sessions? Or are they only useful for comparing change against the same test on the same type of bike?
I don't have or have access to a power meter for any of my bike bikes.
Thanks in advance.
Ramp test is a perfectly valid test protocol, although usually done under observation with blood tests, and usually only 2 mins per 'level'.
I wouldn't trust a power reading from a gym bike unless it was a Wattbike, and even then i'd be sceptical as its probably not been maintained/calibrated in since it was installed.
Thanks for the reply Andy. Hadn't thought of the unrecalibrated bit. Oh well, I'll just keep doing it for the fun instead then.
I wouldn't trust a power reading from a gym bike unless it was a Wattbike, and even then i'd be sceptical as its probably not been maintained/calibrated in since it was installed.
Also, static wattage outputs tend to be significantly lower than "real life" mainly due to the fact that you produce a massive amount of heat that simply can't be shed in a typical gym setting.
D.
Like any of these things it's only meaningful if you use the same bike repeatedly and then it's a guide.
As long as you feel like your getting fitter from the sessions based on your FTP that's more important than your FTP score etc. IMO
If you want to use it to measure improvement then as long as you keep using the same bike each time you test it should be ok. Just take any power readings with a pinch o' salt and don't try and compare yourself with anyone else.
Whilst a gym bike may not be as good as a proper lab bike, it will only be a few % out*, which is neither here nor there in the grand scheme of things....
*It's trivial to measure power accurately in the motor, so only excessive friction losses would create a larger error, which is unlikely as most gym bikes are very well built.