A few questions

Training Plans
1

Hiya
Next week is the last week of the Advanced SS polarised. However, for the first time this year I won’t be able to FTFP. During the week I will probably only be able to do 2 hours each morning on a ride designated day due to work commitments. At the weekend I will be going on holiday so will be travelling and won’t be able to do the 6 hour rides for Saturday and Sunday. Should I treat this as a recovery week or try and fit in the intervals in the shorter period.

During the two week holiday (which starts the week after the plan would of finished) I will be taking the bike and will be able to do some short and long rides every other day. What would you suggest? After most of the year ftfpIng it would now be nice to burn it up a bit but would love to hear your thoughts on holidays, cycling and family balance. Also When would be best to fit in the ftp? The first week in my hols?

Everyone - as a 47 year old I really wanted to test myself against the advanced version of the plan and was fascinated to treat it as an experiment to see if Frank was right about 40 something recovery on the sweetspot polarised podcast. Frank was of course right​:nerd_face: (I suspected he would be) - I managed the time but at the cost of the right power amplification. In short my body was too knackered and recovered too slowly to do the intervals to the right power. I’d done other advanced plans but this was something else. Also had to get up at 4.30 am to complete some of the weekday rides which was really hard :joy: Learnt a lot though and still got some great benefits so don’t think it was damaging :crazy_face:.

1 Like
2

Hi,

I would cut down the volume this week and stick to the intervals. Just focus on the intensity. Come Sunday I would maybe just take that as a rest day. Super short ride.

Then for you two week holiday if you are riding longer you would want to keep the intensity down and focus on volume. If you want to mix in some fun look for Strava segments to tackle. Or you could do bottom to top intervals if you have climbs. Just hit the climbs hard and rest zone 2. Keep it loose and fun. Remember that you will be fresher earlier on in the two weeks so higher intensity and longer rides should come first. Also two weeks is a long time so make sure you mix in your recovery days! Try to follow the same pattern of the plans. Monday off, Tuesday would be the highest intensity day and tapering it down into Thursday. Friday off and then Saturday would be a long and intense day. Finally Sunday can just be endurance. Of course this depends on your exact shedule but keep in mind that you would want the higher intensity days to come after rest days.

As for a field test I would recommend after this 2 week holiday to take a week as a regeneration week. After this regeneration week you could do the 20 minute field test. Should have the fitness from the previous weeks training plus fully rested! During that regeneration week you could do a 2 x 10 minute full gas workout to help determine a pace for the 20 minute test. Chance to see what you maybe capable and not risk blowing up like you could for a 20 minute effort.

1 Like