I just tried a 4DP test and failed. By failed I mean I overcooked the 5 min effort and shutdown for the 20.
What have others done in this situation? Do it again the next day? Do the prep plan for a week and try again?
Interested to see what others have done!
I waited a day, and then repeated the test without a problem.
Since it was my first FF, I was not too worried about the exact accuracy of the numbers.
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what was your pacing like for the five minute? Like, did you end up having to finish it at a power level that is way lower than you started at?
Sorry, edited to add, what do you mean by “shutdown” for the 20? Like did you have to literally stop pedaling, or were you completing it at a power that you thought didn’t match your abilities?
what i’m getting at is that it all depends on what you mean by “failed”. If it was that for some reason you didn’t give your all or you flubbed the pacing so badly on a given portion that the number you get for that portion is way off, then definitely agree that trying the next day usually works just fine.
If it’s that you’re unwell, you may need to play it by ear, as one day may not be long enough for you to be in good condition to go back at it. But again, it’s not unusual to feel crappy after a rest week (hence why the 4DP prep plan has opener efforts in the days before), so if you feel real bad on test day but feel good the next day, by all means give it a shot.
on the other hand, i think some people fall into the trap of, getting an FTP number from other platforms (often estimated by 20 mins x .95 or some such), and then they think taht number is the number they should shoot for, and when they can’t hold onto it during 4DP, they get discouraged and think that they are “failing” whereas in reality, that’s kind of the whole point: 4DP gives an admittedly still simplified but also more comprehensive picture of what your power production over certain durations looks like, it’s totally normal that your 20 min will not be as high as a standalone 20 min test, because the five minute goes right in front of it.
Yeah I understand the various definitions about why people fail or think they fail. My question is just “if you start and don’t complete the 4DP test for whatever reason, how long have people waited, or what have they done before reattempting the test”. I have not seen a post about it so figured I would ask.
Got it. In that case then, I’d say try as soon as you feel like you can do it, which often is as soon as very next day
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Last time I bailed FF (gave up midway through the 20 min section because I wasn’t in the mood) I tried again 3 days later after a bit more rest and repeated Primers the day before. That worked fine for me. Tough as it is, I don’t think FF itself requires more than a day or two of recovery, especially if not fully completed.
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Sorry to hear you over cooked it! If it is just the 5min MAP and 20min FTP efforts you want to redo the Half monty is a great alternative. Give it a few days and do Primers the day before to make sure you are both physically and mentally prepared for it.
Another option can be to manually adjust your numbers if you know where they should be:
If you would rather retest Full Frontal then again I would give it 3-4 days and do Primers the day before. Just in case, here are some pointer for pacing:
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It’s really nice that a coach responded to this, thanks Rupert! And thanks to everyone for their experiences. Much appreciated!
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