So I’ve decided to complicate my life and get back in to martial arts training, but I also want to remain competitive in bike racing. Ideally, I’ll be doing martial arts in the evenings, Monday, Wednesday and Friday for 1-2 hours. How do you recommend adjusting a training plan to compensate, still allowing for adequate recovery? Historically, I’ve used Monday and Friday for pure recovery or “prehab” activities such as yoga.
Hi @brcopeland1 - now would be a good time to set some very specific goals per your statement:
From here, I think we can help you further. It may be a coaching solution if your competitive bike racing goals are high and challenging or it could simply be an easy training plan edit suggestion if your goals are modest and moderately challenging.
Thanks!
Thanks. I currently race Cat 4 in Colorado. Primary goals for the year are State and National TTs as well as Steamboat Stage Race. Secondary goal is to make Cat 3. Lastly, I’d just like to have fun doing it all!
Ok awesome - now we are getting somewhere but you are not done yet:
What are your goals at States and Nationals?
If podium, top 5 or even top 10 I’ll say you need to focus on cycling, do martial arts on the side and #FtFP.
Bear in mind Nationals is the BEST athletes from around the country - they are all training their ass off to be their best. If you want to compete against them, you’ll need to do the same.
Thus there is no adjusting the training plan - its adjusting what you do outside of your training plan and monitoring that to make sure it doesn’t conflict with your goals.
On the other hand if you are like, I still want to do martial arts what I would suggest is to adjust your goals to something more along the lines of
I want to do a top 15 at States and participate in the National TT (knowing you will finish in the bottom half)
There are lots of combinations but the biggest point to make is that what you are asking to do conflicts with each other. And the origins of #FtFP is exactly that - focus on goals that work together not against each other.
Ok, so here’s the goal refinement. Since I’ve competed in all three events before, my goals would be to beat my previous times and as a result, placements.
State: better than 57:08 and achieve a podium spot
Nationals: better than my 58:11 and 14th place from 2019
Steamboat: Improve upon my 29:44 & 3rd place TT from 2019, and do better in the road race and criterium (I think bike handling and cornering confidence can remedy the criterium). Finish better than my 5th overall from 2019.
Ambitious, especially considering the divided interests, but I’ll have longer to prepare and I’ll be starting with better fitness as in 2019 I came “off the bench” near the end of March in average physical (but not race level) condition. I’m also banking on the martial arts improving my core strength, flexibility and perhaps mental acuity/toughness.
I’m looking at following/adapting the 18 week FTP plan and the 6 week race plan.
OK great, now we are talking!
As a self coached athlete with our training plans, your challenge is going to be training more than you did in 2019 to get a better than result. Aka, the holy grail of a higher FTP. Fortunately you have training plans to help you train smarter.
How your plan and martial arts fits into that - that is on you and for you to decide. If you were to hire us as your coach we could help you balance the two. It is impossible to do in a forum not even knowing everything about you as an athlete, husband, dad, employee, etc… if that even applies.
As a training plan athlete you’ll want to experiment and figure that out on your own! I just know as a coach if you have a serious goal, approach the achievement of that goal with laser like precision and focus. Aka no modification of the plan aka #FtFP 
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