8-WEEK FTP BUILDER
An 8-week FTP training plan for cyclists with 7 to 10 hours a week, built for a power meter or a heart rate monitor. Sweet spot, then threshold, then over-unders - to raise the power you can hold for an hour and make it usable when the road goes up and down. FTP test in Week 1, retest in Week 8.
WHY FTP IS YOUR BANK ACCOUNT
If VO2max is engine size, FTP is how much of it you can spend. Every climb, every solo move, every time the group goes hard - those are FTP efforts. A higher FTP means the same effort costs you less. Most amateurs never train at threshold deliberately. This plan does, twice a week, and keeps everything else easy so the hard days are actually hard.
THE SESSIONS
• Sweet spot - 88-94% FTP. The most threshold work per unit of fatigue. Weeks 2-3.
• Classic 2x20 - 20 min at FTP, twice. The session that moves the number. Week 5.
• Threshold 3x15 - 45 min at FTP in one session. Peak week.
• Over-unders - 2 min just under, 1 min just over. Makes FTP usable on real roads. Weeks 5-6.
THE 8 WEEKS
• Week 1 - FTP test Tuesday, long ride Saturday. 7h
• Weeks 2-3 - Sweet spot 2x15 to 2x20. First threshold exposure. 8h-8h30
• Week 4 - Recovery. The week most cyclists skip and shouldn't. 6h
• Weeks 5-6 - Threshold. 2x20, 3x15, over-unders. Long rides to 3h30. 8h30-9h
• Week 7 - Taper with short VO2max sharpeners. 6h
• Week 8 - Retest, same conditions. 5h30
WHO IT'S FOR
• Amateur racers, gran fondo riders and time-trialists whose FTP has stalled
• Riders whose 20 min power is low relative to their 5 min power
WHO IT ISN'T FOR
• Riders whose heart rate drifts badly on easy rides - build the base first
• Riders who treat every ride as a race - this runs on patient progression
QUESTIONS
Without a power meter? Yes. Sweet spot and threshold carry heart rate targets. Over-unders are ridden by feel. You test with a 30 min time trial.
Indoors? Yes. Every session works on a trainer.
How much will my FTP go up? No honest coach promises a number. Most riders who complete the block see a measurable gain at the Week 8 retest, and the plan tells you what to do if you do not.
Which plan first? Base if your heart rate drifts. FTP if it holds but your 20 min power is low. VO2max if FTP is above 80% of your 5 min power.
INCLUDED
• Every workout with Purpose, Main set and Fuel - nothing to decide
• PDF execution guide - zones, tests, weekly logic
• Personalized Loom from Coach Toms on your Week 1 and Week 8 numbers
THE COACH TOMS 8-WEEK SYSTEM
Zone 2 Base Builder builds the engine. FTP Builder raises the hour power. VO2max Builder raises the ceiling. The Week 8 retest tells you which is next.
Ride fast. Lift heavy. Perform.
Coach Toms Flaksis · cyclingcoachtoms.cc · Instagram @tomsflaksis
High-performance cycling coach working with World Tour riders, Olympians, and the Guinness World Record holder in ultracycling. Expert in endurance, strength, and recovery. Coaching backed by a sports doctor and physiotherapist team trusted by pro cyclists.