FTP adjustment mid plan

Cyclocross
1

Starting week 7 of the 12 week CX offseason SS Plan, and I’ve noticed over the past 2 weeks that sweet spot wattage is feeling much easier for me–perhaps even too easy?

On Sunday, for example, the plan called for 45 minutes of Sweetspot in a 2.5-hour ride. I broke the work down in 15 min intervals and felt so good at the end, I was even able to complete an extra interval for 60 mins total in Sweet spot.

The ride description said it this was OK “if you feel good.”

Throughout the first 2 intervals, my HR remained quite low (145bpm, zone 2 for me), so for the remaining 2 intervals, I rode off of HR instead of power, and was able to complete the last intervals at +10watt above target (92% of FTP), and my heart rate still didn’t reach the top of zone 3 for me. (And this was after a 3.5 hour, 205 TSS ride the day before.) I noticed a similar low HR and easier than expected ride during my 3 x 10 min 100% threshold efforts after my first rest week in week 4 of the program.

Should I bump my FTP up +7-10 watts to try and get most out of the remaining weeks in my sweet spot phase?

2

Have you been able to do any group rides? Those are a great way to test yourself and test your limits? It’s very possible your FTP has gone up after 6 weeks of sweet spot work.

https://fascatcoaching.com/tips/how-to-measure-ftp-improvement-with-group-rides/

I see the following week should be a regeneration week for you? This is the best time to do a field test. Use the weekend as a time to do a field test on Saturday like you did when you started the plan.

If yo are worried about not working hard enough this week you can set your targets at the upper end of sweet spot. Shoot for 95 - 97% of your current FTP. That should give you a solid workout.

2 Likes
3

Thanks Jake. I’ll include a field test at the end of my next recovery week.