Why Benchmarking Matters

Training without a benchmark is like setting off on a journey without knowing your starting point. You might have a clear destination in mind, but without understanding where you areat thebeginning, it becomes almost impossible to plan the right route, judge progress, or know if you are heading in the right direction at all. Benchmarking in training serves exactly this purpose. Itestablishes your true starting point so that every decision thatfollows.Without thisstarting point, training often becomes reactive rather than strategic, driven by feel alone rather thanbeiinginformed by data. Benchmarking removes the guesswork and replaces it with clarity, allowing you to plan your training journey with intent,accuracy and confidence.  

It also provides essential context for improvement; withoutan initial benchmark, there is no way to confidently say how far you have progressed or how effective your training has been. 

Choosing the Right Benchmark 

Not all benchmarks serve the same purpose, and choosing the right test is just as important as testing itself. The benchmark you use must directly reflect the outcome you are training towards. If your primary goal is endurance performance, a longer threshold-based testsuch as a 20 min FTP test or Max Ramp test,willprovide meaningful insight into your sustainable power and aerobic efficiency. 

 If you are training for explosive power or short, sharp efforts, shorter maximal tests will be far more relevant such as the 30s test or 6s peak power test. Hybrid athletes mayrequire a blend of benchmarks that capture both sustained output and high-intensity repeatability to see where their performance lies. 

 Problems arise when athletes select benchmarks that do not align with their goals, leading to training that is structured aroundthe wrongqualities. The test should always serve theobjective, not the other way around. When the benchmark matches the goal, the data becomestruly useful.It stops being just a number and becomes a tool for shaping how you train and how you progress. 

Using the Data to Plan Your Workouts 

 Once a benchmark isestablished, its real value comes from how the data is applied to your daily training. This is where testing transforms into personalised performancedevelopment.  

A benchmark such as aHealthspan or FTP test allows you to define precise training zones that reflect your actual physiological capabilities. These zones then dictate how hard your endurance sessions should feel, how demanding your threshold work becomes, and how intense your high-power intervals truly are. Instead of relying on vagueperceptions of effort, every session now has a specific physiological purpose. Endurance rides stay aerobic, threshold sessions target sustainable performance, and high-intensity work develops the systems it is designed to improve. This structured approach ensures that your training load isappropriate, your recovery is respected, and each workout contributes directly to your long-term progression rather than accumulating unnecessary fatigue or wasted effort.

Retesting and Preventing Stagnation 

 As fitness improves, the training stimulus that once drove adaptation will no longer be sufficient. This is why retesting is essential. Without regular re-benchmarking, training zones become outdated, sessions begin to feel easier than intended, and progress gradually slows or stalls altogether. Retesting allows your training to evolve in line with your improving fitness, ensuring that intensityremains appropriately challenging and that the body continues to adapt.  

Testing every eight to twelve weeks isgenerally sufficient to capture meaningful improvements without creating unnecessary disruption to training structure. It provides a natural rhythmto assess,adjust and progress. 

Retesting is not about chasing numbers for their own sake, but about keeping your training accurately aligned with your current ability so that improvementremains continuous,controlled and sustainable over time. 

Top 5 Benchmarking Tips 

Wattbike Top Tests 

Healthspan Check 

What it is: 
TheHealthspan Check quantifies your fitness scorerelative to your age and gender.  Whilst also calculating yourcardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) plus your Maximum Minute Power (MMP), Maximum Heart Rate (MHR), Functional ThresholdPower (FTP)and Functional Threshold Heart Rate (FTHR).To give you the mostaccuarate training zones based on your current fitness level. 

What it tests for: 
Cardio fitness and aerobic efficiency.How well your cardiovascular system delivers oxygen during exercise. 

Who should use it: 
Beginners, moderately active people, and anyone wanting a baseline fitness metric before starting structured training. 

6-Second Peak Power Test 

What it is: 
The 6s peak power test A very short test that measures yourhighest instantaneous power output and peak cadence over 6 seconds. 

What it tests for: 
Explosive strength and sprint ability, particularly neuromuscular power. 

Who should use it: 
Sprinters, team-sport athletes, and riders focusing on short, high-power efforts. 

30-Second Test 

What it is: 
A short, high-intensity sprint test that records peak power, average power,cadence and a fatigue factor across 30 seconds. 

What it tests for: 
Anaerobic capacity and sprint endurance- how well youmaintain high power over a short, intense effort. 

Who should use it: 
Experienced cyclistsor athletes with a focus on sprint or short-duration events. 

3-Minute Aerobic Test 

What it is: 
A maximal 3-minute effort that measures Maximum Minute Power (MMP) and Maximum Heart Rate (MHR),itcan also provide FTP and Functional Threshold Power estimates. 

What it tests for: 
High-intensity aerobic capacity- your ability to sustain power nearVO₂max. 

Who should use it: 
Trained athletes with good conditioning who want to track aerobic improvements. 

FTP Test (20-Minute Threshold Test) 

What it is: 
A 20-minute maximal effort used to estimate your Functional Threshold Power (FTP)- the highest power you can sustain for about an hour. 

What it tests for: 
Endurance power and pacing ability- key for structured training zones.  

Who should use it: 
Cyclists who want precise training zones and performance benchmarks.  

Maximal Ramp Test 

What it is: 
A progressive incremental test to exhaustion - increasing workload every minute until failure.Considered the “gold standard” fordetermining true Maximum Minute Power (MMP) and Maximum Heart Rate (MHR). 

What it tests for: 
Maximal aerobic capacity and peak performance metrics. 

Who should use it: 
Highly trained athletes and sport scientists,monitoring peak performance improvements. 
 
 
 Need more support on how to get started click HERE and start your strongest year yet!