Creating ATP for 2020

I am starting to look at next year and planning my ATP in Training Peaks.

I have identified 2020’s A Races (BWR early May and DK200 late May) and will be attending Camps for both (Jan and April respectively). Everything I had planned for the rest of the year has gone by the roadside including Haute Route SF. So my question is what should I do between now and then. I do plan to do a few CX races over the winter but these are low priority in the grand scheme of things.

Looking at the over time frame, should I:

Option A) 32 Week Off Season Plan 9/7/19 to 4/18/20

or

Option B) 18 weeks Sweet Spot 12/28/19 to 4/18/20

either option would be followed by 6 weeks Gravel Grinder from 4/18 through Race Day

If Option A is there any suggestion on what to do from now through to the end of the year?

Finally can you confirm the Intermediate (of whatever plan) is the right choice

Thanks and keep up the great work!

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You should complete the 32 week plan!

In that you will start with our Fall Foundation work, which would be around now, then begin the resistance training phase with strength work, followed by sweet spot 1,2 and 3. Then continuing on with the gravel grinder plan would be a great way to follow all that up.

Here is more information on building the ATP
https://fascatcoaching.com/tips/annual-training-plan/

If you haven’t had a proper off season break you may want to do that before you begin the plan. It is important to have that brief time away. Not sure what your season or training has been up to this point.
https://fascatcoaching.com/tips/post-season-break/

This is a simple diagram of the training year and what you will be doing throughout the year. Kind of the big picture.
28%20AM

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Like Coach @Jake said Option A and then our Gravel plan for the 6 weeks leading into the BWR.

Make darn tooting sure you take a 2 week post season break before you begin training for 2020 :muscle:https://fascatcoaching.com/tips/post-season-break/

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Also - here is another graph of the off season

Which do you like better?

@FRANK and @Jake thanks for the replies.

I do like the first graph more…it has more data/info and is has more dimensions, weight, hours etc

Some follow up questions:

  1. I don’t quite have enough time to fit the 32 week + 6 week plans in between now and DK and have a couple of weeks downtime…which is sorely needed! I need to shave two weeks off of something…the 32 weeks I assume, what/where do you suggest I cut?

  2. I am assuming both plans should be the Intermediate versions, (I have the time), can you confirm?

  3. The Gravel Grinder has a Hilly or Flat option. Would you consider DK to be flat? It certainly is compared Crushar but you do still accumulate a fair amount of gain over the distance, which do you suggest?

Thanks in advance

  1. I would cut off the 2 weeks at the end of the 32 week plan. You will get similar work with the 6 week gravel plan.

  2. Yes you can chose intermediate for both plans. That is what works for 90% of people.

  3. You could chose the hilly version. In training ideally you just find courses that similar to race you will be racing and do your rides on that. With the Hilly version you do get some good short Vo2 max work which is good as Kansas is anything but flat. But the most important thing is your gravel simulation rides where you ride near race pace and find a course that is similar in elevation if possible.

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Thank you @Jake now to have some rest and then onwards!

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I am obviously not a Fascat coach but I think these plans for BWR and DK are perfect and so is the timing. I used the Foundation and Sweet Spot plans (with some tweaking) and just of pick and choose workouts they have created had a successful fun season racing BWR, DK and SBT GRVL. Good luck at those races!! They are so fun and hard!!

#sweetspot4life

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I wasn’t particularly good in math or english and may prove that again here but I get 31 weeks of offseason training instead of 32 when I add up
3 Foundation
10 Weightlifting
18 SS 1+2+ 3

Am I supposed to throw in a rest week or week off for being a good #FTFP boy somewhere? If so, where?

I’ve loaded up the Foundation through SS1 plans so far and don’t see any week long gap?

SS part 3 has 7 weeks actually so that’s 19 weeks, 32 total

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I was going to post my own thread but this one illustrates the question pretty well so I’ll add on here. Hope it’s not too much thread jacking!

Is the FasCat philosophy that those many weeks of weights, sweet spot etc is enough base that a shorter race specific period of 6 weeks is sufficient even for the races the original poster mentioned (BWR, DK200)? The weekend rides don’t seem that long in all the sweet spots - between 2hr on the low end and 4hr on the higher end. Would it be wise to periodically extend some of those when aiming at longer races? Specifically for me I mean Crushar & Land Run.

The sweet spot plans are generic and work for the majority. As many riders that compete in these ultra endurance events it is still far less than those using our plans. We can’t make a plan specifically for everyone and every scenario. That is what one on one coaching or even the coaching subscription is for.

But you hit it on the head. You can still follow the plan but on the weekends might want to add in more riding specifically to your event. Slowly build up your endurance rides through the weeks. Biggest ride still should be in that race specific plan 2 to 3 weeks out. So most of the 18 week sweet spot plan is good. It’s the first 3-4 weeks of the gravel plan you’ll do race specific rides building that endurance even more.

You really don’t want every weekend ride to 6 - 8 hours. The normal person can’t recover from that while still completing the weekday workouts.

Hope that helps!

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Also this is what our Gravel Plan is for! The all important 6 weeks of loooooooong ride prep for LandRun.

It’s ideal to do after you have gone thru Sweet Spot 1-3 or the 18 week plan. Model out your CTL with those plans too to nail the timing and the taper