How Much Faster After 1 Year Of Cycling? - New FTP Test

[@nikgracanin6180]

It's good to have goals, but remember, if you really want to train properly and efficiently (that means consistency and structure are key) you have to somewhat arrange your life around that, that's just how it is. Training takes a lot of time (well, actual training might take only an hour per day, but everything else that goes into it-mainly sleep and recovery do take a lot of it) and many people might find other aspect of life more important and that's okay.

[@nicolas2838]

For cycling, one hour per day usually isn't enough😅.

[@ViveLeVeloNL]

I will share my new FTP test in a week. Polarized training with a lot of 1 or 1.5H rides. I can tell you, when training the right zones, you will improve a lot.

[@ViveLeVeloNL]

And nice video's Benji, great to Watch🔥🔥 keep it up

[@Savonge]

for this guy who rode 126 hours in 2023 riding 1 hour perday which is 365 hours per year will do Marvels! its 3 times as much@@nicolas2838

[@ianwilliams3254]

Good advice. :)

[@thomassinikangas]

That's a great year! Congratulations on the progress! Quite confident you've gained muscle over the year, so don't beat yourself up over the weight staying the same. The main thing is to stay consistent and making training a habit, then when starting to focus on diet you'll really start kicking ass! Good luck on 2024! Looking forward to follow your progress!

[@scottytremaineplays9461]

Great work Benji. It’s great to see your improvement and the realism of fitting riding with life

[@kathyljohnson6203]

Super proud of you Benji! Rome wasn't built in a day and this cycling journey never ends. Enjoy every ride, and better nutrition + consistency are great goals! 👊🤗

[@Theralol]

Keep it up! Results comes from being consistent. After several years of wanting to do better I finally did this year. FTP went from 245 to 343 while down quite some weight. Over 10.000 kilometers ridden. Climbed Stelio, Gavia and several Swiss alps. A lot can happen in a year.

[@JamieEnglish]

While 343 is very, very impressive - this is also pro level. Go get on some races mate!

[@saschaguy1370]

How’d you do that my ftp is 250 how do I get to 340

[@Theralol]

@@saschaguy1370: I mean, I'm 188cm & 90 kg, so my w/kg is not that impressive. But just ride your bike as much as you can while still having fun. Consistency trumps everything. Find something that motivates you. How fast you get there depends on how much you train, your athletic background and some genetics.

[@krismcgowan4308]

wow this is excellent Benji and so inspirational too, I'm really invested in your progress now!

[@johnconarty3762]

Awesome job man!!!! I feel the pain on the nutrition part haha, ending the year the same or maybe even a bit heavier honestly. I been pushing in zwift and in the real world as well though and feel I am getting stronger. I been enjoying the climb portal in Zwift as of late, made it up Cote de Domancy this AM in 18mins 20sec with avg power of 296W, not bad for a 127kg guy. Keep killing it man!

[@gvs7630]

Great work Benji. 2024 will be a breakthrough year for you

[@bdk2116]

Great job this year, and you've set out some very reasonable and achievable goals that will also push you. Good luck! It's all about consistency.

[@Rich28448]

Really good to see you improve from a really low base to being able to achieve great things -keep up the good work!

[@ACanette]

Nice stuff man. hope you can acheive all your goals.

[@mathieuvanacker2842]

Nice vid Benji! An improvement of +30W is not to be underestimated. Can't really remember the last time I did that. When you come back home to conquer the cobbles of the Flemish Ardennes, hit me up. I have tons of briliant routes and I'm more than happy to join.

[@CamPearson]

Great stuff Benji, well done...great improvements. Looking forward to seeing how you keep it up in 2024

[@Tyler_Does_Cycling]

Love your videos, giving me the inspiration to start my own cycling channel, thank you and keep up the hard work !!

[@kennywilson7413]

Great channel. Great vids. Love your way of approaching the sport and most of all that you'll be inspiring more folk to get into it than many could.

[@sonkegrewe4111]

Thanks for staying authentic with your progress reports. Makes people like ourselves stick to it, seeing that other peoples also don't always make the progress that other channels suggest "definetely will happen" (I WENT FROM 220 TO 800 W FTP IN 3 WEEEEEEKS). Enjoy your nutrition journey - I found it so much fun to eat better and thereby improving my fitness one kilo at a time. I went from 95 to 80 kilos in the past 15 months without ever feeling hungry. It does take time (information and kitchen time) and commitment though, like anything worthwhile. This is NOT sponsored but Hello Fresh actually helped me with inspiration for healthy meals and portion control.

[@adamloake]

Great work Benji and well done with everything you've achieved this year!

[@MegaKaos95]

Arrived today my new zwift hub one, i had a 178w ftp (74kg) on my tacx flow smart wheel on, now i did gain the ftp test (kinda 2 month stop because the trainer broke) and got 163. now start my journey to getting back to 178 and past that, my goal is to reach 3w/kg but is really hard i know that. keep on riding :)

[@oreoz]

Good job! I cracked 6k kms, raised my ftp around 25w up to 288w and I'm now under 100kg this year. You got this! Just keep riding and remember it's always about the journey. ✌️

[@ianwilliams3254]

Great update mate. Only discovered your videos recently while researching smart bikes. Hoping to get into Zwift riding in the next couple of weeks. Just gotta buy that smart bike.

[@miyomore1725]

Let's go Benji! Keep on putting in that effort

[@MarriedWithBackpacks]

Going from D to C will be easy if you lose weight. Just keep cycling so you don't lose those watt you gained this year. I went from 96kgs to 84 in 4 months, ftp from 180 to 265, alpe du zwift in 62 mins and went from D to C. Put in some effort to count calories. Combine that with regular zwift riding, you'll want to lose more to get more w/kg. It's quite addicting. I am still trying to lose 4 kgs. But with the holidays coming up, it might take a bit longer now. Good luck on your goals! And don't eat too many frietjes met mayo ;)

[@HelloThankYouDeNada]

Good job. You might want to also include a weightlifting routine in your training so you can build muscle that will help you perform better on the bike. Good luck to you

[@AlanJames]

Great stuff Benji. Best of luck with your 2024 goals.

[@dp2619]

Go for it Benji! You are inspiring people you’ll never even meet and that’s pretty amazing dude! Keep up the good work from 🇺🇸

[@BenjiNaesenTV]

Thanks for the kind words. :)

[@yosoypatrick]

Thanks for this Benji, you should be proud of what you have achieved in 2023 and you’ve clearly laid the groundwork for some achievable and testing goals next year, maybe you could do a group ride for your Alpe du Zwift goal so others like myself can draft, pace and encourage you?

[@mol8707]

Keep up the good work 👍 Try more polarized training with much zone 2. For you I think you should aim on a heartrate of 130-140 and do rides for like 1,5-2 hours This is my third year cycling. Made 10.000km. started at 225 begin this year and now my ftp is 289 with 67kg. Measured on a Zwift race. The ftp test I will do next week. Fingers crossed 🤞

[@vozzen]

If you only do 3 hours a week you benefit way more from doing Z3

[@kanuto6745]

Whats your training hours per week like? How long is your hard ride? And frequency?

[@mol8707]

​ @kanuto6745 In summer 3 to 4 times a week. Mostly 2 times (tuesday/thursday) around 50-60km, and on saterday/sunday around 100km. So around 200km per week in around 7-8 hours. Number of kms can vary because sometimes i use a mountainbike to alternate. In winter I do more zwifting and in weekend one outside ride. Then i will go down in hours (like 5-7 hours a week). In winter I do also run 2 or 3 times a week (5km) Last year in summer i did scale up to 15 hours a week for a big event (did every week 2 hours extra started from 6 hours) To maintain this i had to do more zone 2 rides with a low heartrate. So i was able to get not so much fatique in the legs and did rest enough for the next ride

[@kanuto6745]

@mol8707 wow. Thats a very good progress. 👍

[@matthewarmstrong4914]

As a 103kg guy with an ftp of 224 (although haven't tried a proper test) I'm following your progress closely! Good luck and I look forward to seeing how you get on. I'm planning on sitting down on the last day of the year and setting out some goals in a more formal way than I usually do. Have a 100 mile sportive I want to do in August and really want to complete the cycle leg of the "Swedish classic" in 2025 as a long term goal. But think I need some shorter term goals/goals around consistency and process (rather than results) as well. Also planning on following the pro cycling season a lot more closely than normal in 2024! Was a 99th percentile listener to the podcast in 2023 according to Pocket Casts, so thank you on the assist for that one!

[@andreasola7957]

Great results, you are really a source of inspiration. As a boomer cyclist I can only say that more outdoor riding in aerobic zone with a good diet will make your goals happen. Zwift is great for power training but longer and easier rides are more effective for weight. BRAVO from Italy

[@Acrore]

It's sick to watch you improve so much! I went from 213 to 258 this year! And I'm 97 kg but the watts are going up and my weights coming down!

[@jkorbel]

Congrats Benji!!! Keep it up

[@AbhinavGoyal-b5d]

Great job, Benji. It's interesting how strikingly similar our journey in this regard have been. I too recently went to slightly higher than 2 W/kg on my 20 min test, and am aiming to get to 3 W/kg next. I too believe that that is achievable, and the limits to that exist in my mind and not in my body. All the best!

[@BekaertPiet]

Great work, 'als in'...respect man, knap werk in 1 jaar tijd!

[@Mattyjayw]

Always brilliant content pal, and tip my cap to you with your ftp gain. 👏🏻👏🏻

[@ethanmarston9446]

Genuinely inspirational man. Cheers to an even stronger 2024 🍻

[@Unkown1.0]

Category C is gonna be harsh. Just finished a race and got absolutly recked. i drove 185w or like 3,2 w/kg for 25.5min with 17km, 215 mh. ended 120/710. Really nice to see your videos though go smash it in 2024. And remember when you are about to give up. Its all mind games, dont let it win. Sounds like something david goggins would say and speaking of david goggins. I would STRONGLY recommend you buying and reading his book "cant hurt you". Its a big motivater. eventhough he says motivation is for quitters. Real men and women for that sake keep going with disciplin. :)

[@keith_cottongim]

Zwift has been a blessing to me. My kids have gotten older, and my life has gotten busier. The FTP TEST…. I thought a ramp test would be better to do than the 20 minute test. I was wrong I had rather do the 20 minute test any day over the ramp test

[@Flachlandtiroler89]

great journey, great conclusion, great plans for next year. Go ahead and you will achieve all your goals!

[@simonrobbins815]

Great year Benji! Hope you will have time to do more easy & long (zone 2) rides next year, will be really boring and not great viewing 🤣 but I reckon you'll see massive improvements.

[@richardwhalen4624]

I appreciate your suffering and honesty! Chapeau!!!

[@lewisA76]

Well done Benji. I starting cycling after a 4 year gap at the end of last summer. I too have also set goals for 2024 similar to yours. Best of luck I'll be following. I may even document on here although I'm not to sure about that yet 😊.

[@Biltongus]

Your videos are so good, you're a natural at what you do and inspirational too. Looking forward to watching in 2024, I have some similar goals!

[@RyanCondon]

Some awesome goals for 2024. Congratulations on your achievements this year too. 💪

[@josipX]

great job. just got my zwift hub one a couple of days ago, being overweight myself. hopefully I can stick to it like you did

[@euregioradeln]

Congrats on your achievements this year and all the best for 2024! I think you can absolutely achieve your goals. I strongly recommend a structured workout (maybe LIT/HIT training) plan for next year! I´m doing one this winter and the results in a short term of time are amazing.

[@sirrichi]

super well done, chapeau! never lose the fun on the bike :)

[@Dispariabooks]

I'm an idiot and got in the habit of doing 60 minute FTP tests....don't be like me unless you like to regularly enjoy feeling like your eyes melt out of your skull. And three tips for 2024: 1. Set process goals over outcome goals. You can't always control results, but you can focus on process goals like riding 5 times a week 2. Consistency is key. Even if you're not doing structure, consistency will net you improvements. 3. Fuel the work you do. Eat and drink to achieve what you want and nutrition becomes easy. Good luck!

[@TimMatheeussen]

Congrats Benji!

[@paulw677]

Well done Benji, great to watch your progress. As said many times already - consistency is the key as is structure. Sounds like you have a very busy life so check out YT and podcasts on training for a time crunched cyclist. Keep up the great podcast work, really enjoy your race analysis. Will be even more important down under now that GCN+ is RIP

[@jqcyclist]

You achieved some great results as a whole, even if you didn't hit certain numbers - but like you said, other factors could have impact on the ftp test, so I wouldn't focus on that 3 watt 'defict'. Congrats on all you accomplished this year. I too haven't been on the bike much last year - I did just a few more kms than you (about 600) and have set new goals for me next year to get me back on the bike more.

[@jamesporter5630]

Slow and steady. Don’t quit on yourself.

[@DBxCooper]

Very wise to set a goal. No matter what it is. Mine was 5000 miles(8000km) in 2023 between real riding and zwift. Divided it up pretty evenly between the 2 and completed it in early December. I didn’t come up with anything for 2024 yet but it WONT be that again. It was a task

[@troylaughlin3672]

Nice, putting the effort in always gets you results... My thoughts on Ramp VS 20min FTP. The result will vary depending on your strengths. I would probably get a higher result on 20min than ramp, thus is because I have a decent base fitness and ride usually 6 days a week. My strength is my biggest weakness and thus a ramp test is actually hard for my. The trick is accept one method, and adjust the bias dependant on workout type and it will be on the money.

[@aikman21]

Great result ....but don't forget to HAVE FUN 🙂

[@adampalotai4846]

good job,i basicly went trought the same this year starting my first proper year, i was in one uci gran fondo and one normal gran fondo this year (basicly 4-5 hour ftp test😂) then move to a new country and now i ride again consistently since a month so i am back in shape, i recommend to do more zone 2 rides it helps a lott and not that much suffering😇

[@MałeckiM]

Thank you Benji! Your videos motivate me! 😊 I hope to be a better cyclist next year as well :)

[@rafspeetjens7719]

Keep up the work in 2024 Benji! You’re doing great!!

[@FT__Cool_Stuff______-of5pi]

Your thumbnail pic looks like a teddy bear in rage. This kind of data is interesting - to see how quickly others are able to make improvements

[@rcs2003]

Ah finally a "real" improvement video! Im tired of the "I went from 150W to 300W in one year indoors" unrealistic bullshit type videos. Keep up the good work mate! :)

[@phil_d]

Good work for 2023, Benji! I have just started out on Zwift late 2023 and in a similar position: too heavy and looking to increase watts over the full range. If you add in some strength training, you will definitely see results from that, too. What is your experience with the Zwift Hub One? I'm currently on a Kickr Snap wheel-on that I have found has disadvantages in short Crit races. Thanks, and I'm looking forward to seeing how 2024 unfolds for you 👍🏻

[@redbertiethechampion1863]

Fantastisc result. Keep going👍

[@KillrobPlays]

Great progress over the year despite some downtime in the middle :) those FTP tests man, mental demolition! Reasonable goals for next season I would say, go crush it! What is the worst time within the 20min FTP test for you? Mine probably is 10min to go xD "Do that again!? HOW?"

[@tiiimmmaaayyyy3616]

"why do I do this to myself?", that question gets asked every week! :)

[@Savonge]

Hi Benji, i've been following for a while, but I think you should put another goal for yourself which is to never go a week without cycling at least 4 hours. 126 hours per year is 2 hours a week, that's great because you were doing nothing and it's a great improvement, but you should get used to riding 3-4 times a week for at least an hour. it will do marvels for your fitness. main thing I dont see in you goals are consistency. and another thing it's not the KM it's the hours, you climbed ADZ it was 2 hours but only 10 km. you can't compare it to 1 hour tempus fugit in a group ride going 35k/ph , I'd focus on TIme not KM ... and aim to get at least 250 hours this year . its 4 hours per week which can be 2 X 2 hour rides or 3X1:20 hour rides . or 4 1 hour rides. that's my 2 cents.

[@shanegreen2583]

Get effort and loved the end when you said why am I doing this 😂

[@jeffcreed365]

Benji in America is a nice dog, good luck.

[@larrywhite8590]

Well done, pretty impressive. Sadly what I have realized and what the pros also know is the biggest gains are by simply dropping weight (up to a point). W/kg (unless you are only riding flats) is all that matters. And the kg part is generally a lot easier to change.

[@briang43]

You are right...... why do we do this to ourselves 🤣- Nice work @Benji

[@whistler1266]

Imo it's good to set a floor of minimum amount of time spent on bike per day/week and stick to it. You can track your hours pretty easily and it sets you up for consistent schedule.

[@pmcmpc]

Ride way more outside. Unless you're a real indoor monster (don't think you are), it's really hard to motivate yourself to ride more and ride hard and push yourself indoors.

[@johnthebiker300]

I prefer to aim for annual hours rather than kilometres. The reason being is that you can influence the distance just by selecting hilly and flat routes. Hours is a truer test of effort.

[@trust123500]

good progress! btw, how did you get the table of different intervals of power and months? was it done by a specific app?

[@martincburns]

Well done 🙏 instead of thinking about kms it’s better to have an hour target, 5 hours a week would be a really good goal. Currently doing 10 hours a week indoors so can be done 😆

[@rolandhoward8421]

Anyone else really want to see a race between Benji and @RyanCondon? One thing though, if you guys want to move from Cat D to C you’ll have to beat the likes of @QuarterTonActivities and me! Love all your stuff! Whereabouts did you move to Benji?

[@rolandhoward8421]

You may be the same weight but you look much better for it and you’ve improved hugely.

[@bensachs1855]

You should come race Unbound Gravel on June 1!!

[@JuliusPersson]

try to follow a robopacer next time, much easier to keep motivation up while doing 20min test...or do the epic climb instead and beat your old shadow...and to get time in the saddle I can recommend group riders...they are lovely! Times flies. just did 4.5h group ride last Sunday 230watt/av at 82kg

[@kevinb6835]

@benji you use the hub one ? is it good ? which cog in front do you use ?

[@tristanm8250]

If you keep this up, a few years from now you will be zooming up Alpe du Zwift at 4+w/kg no problem. Consistency is key!

[@janeburns8789]

Here’s to 2024!! Love your smiles

[@Mauro.09]

Maybe you can make another video at the end of 24 and maybe at the middel (around now) to have a great overview and to maybe change your take on of your plans🔥

[@gearmonger8616]

Nice job, the definition(s) of FTP are mind boggling. There is a definite mathematical formula regarding the Ramp and FTP tests. Neither is your actual FTP, depending on the definition used or coach involved. Your chart shows your true 1hr power already.

[@BenjiNaesenTV]

I don’t really care about the definitions I just use it for comparison purposes. Has my Ramp Test result gotten better? Has my FTP result gotten better? Like that.

[@gearmonger8616]

No worries, you are getting better and will keep getting better. The definition just confuses Zwift users (even longtime users like myself) and as you move toward longer events it becomes relevant as to how you train. That's all I mean, no offense. @@BenjiNaesenTV

[@BenjiNaesenTV]

No worries, haha. Wasn’t offended. :)

[@ds6914]

Get on Rouvy, get up early, do a classic climb every morning - aim just to get to the top. You'll improve super quick

[@jpmoosic]

Why not set process goals like 'make time to train x hours per week' and have the other stuff as aspirations, as the improvements/times etc. are lines in the sand and some of them maybe out of your control but improvements are more likely to follow as a result of implementation of good processes?

[@bikeanddogtripsvirtualcycling]

You may find this good for motivation and good practice. Get a free trial with Rouvy. Attempt the Mont Ventoux (malaucene) climb. It is a good climb at 1570m over 21km but the gradient doesn't go above 14% for maybe 10m plus the first 15k is quite undulating with chance for a short leg (short as per time not leg length) recovery around halfway. You will likely find your 2024 goal routes to practice on too

[@chrisko6439]

I think the goals at the long climbs are set a bit too high. 13 minutes faster on a ~90minute climb, that is A LOT. Try 8, imho.

[@philipnelza]

Well done Benji! Can you or anyone else please tell me where did you get your monthly best effort watts over certain time periods 5s - 60min? That table that you made in Excell? I would like to do something similar.

[@BenjiNaesenTV]

I have it from The Breakaway app, from iPhone App Store

[@JuliusPersson]

do u have power pedals or watt from your trainer, and what brand or trainer do u have?

[@chrisridesbicycles]

Quite a big difference between the tests. I think the truth is somewhere in the middle. Great plans for 2024. You can do it!

[@TheNotSoFakeNews]

Over the same time ive gone from a fairly pathetic 130 ftp to around 190 - although struggled with commitment in the last 4 months. Hopefully i'll do better through the new year. Edit: lost some weight though and accidentally got booted out of category D to C, so now i get dropped in the first 10 mins of every race 😅 oh well just gonna grind out some 3x 10minute ftp intervals for a few months until i become more competitive.

[@BenjiNaesenTV]

Awesome progress! 🙌

[@davescott94]

Nice one. How did you collect all your power data? Does that come from zwift?

[@BenjiNaesenTV]

Thanks! I use The Breakaway app.

[@oldtwinsna8347]

My only suggestion is to not get too caught up in the performance metrics. You'll eventually burn out from it and end up quitting altogether. Better to just find a consistent rhythm where you aren't killing yourself.

[@hgiusdfajgfds]

20min result might be more realistic, but it's also harder to pace as you've noticed. the "truth" is probably somewhere between these two values

[@MitchBoyer]

👏👏👏

[@roadcyclist1]

FTP is deceiving. You need to pair your ftp with w/kg to get the full picture. Depending on your weight, 225 watt ftp could be really good or really bad.

[@BenjiNaesenTV]

If weight doesn't change, w/kg progress will be the same as absolute watts progress, so my w/kg progress in 2023 wasn't relevant.

[@philipb.1950]

For a male athlete 225 is never really bad and also never really good, unless you’re like 50kg but that’s very very rare

[@roadcyclist1]

@BenjiNaesenTV I was just saying that w/kg would let you know where you stand in comparison to others. If you don't care about how you stack up, then yes, it is irrelevant.

[@patty109109]

His weight is 110. I’m sure his greatest gain to w/kg would be reducing weight. My power is only slightly above his and my weight only slightly less but I know I could lose 20 kilos, which would take me from top of D well into C category. 100 kilos is just a freaking ton of weight to move up a hill (speak from experience). Accordingly my main goal is to just maintain watts but drop mega pounds.

[@ds6914]

at least 5w drive chain losses, means 227! Well done :)

[@psd9850]

Congrats dude. Focus on your nutrition, loose those kgs and you will not only achieve your goals, you will crush them.

[@victorpedro9809]

How do you eat? You can reach a good level of you lose 20 kilos in a calorie déficit

[@JoeJoe-lq6bd]

My honest opinion is that the 20 minute test isn't any more accurate than a ramp test. I say this because I think people misinterpret what is meant by FTP being what you can hold for an hour. If you've done a 20 minute or 60 minute FTP test properly, you should be almost incapacitated at the end and unable to ride the next day at all. Only the very top pro riders would be able to gauge their effort over an hour or even 20 minutes like that. So for most people a 20 minute test will always be on the low side.

[@lucvanschevensteen]

nog een tip benji ik train op hm jaarlijks gewoon 150000 of min de week 2000geloof me hier gade veel sterker voor worden buiten

[@Esch1231]

do a group ride on around Oudenaarde please 😅