I started the year with some solid goals that won’t happen or have moved to a time that doesn’t work for me. I have completed the 18 weeks of sweet pot with resistance training, followed by sweet spot 3 and started the 40K TT plan. I am sitting at about 90 CTL and need a target and plan to keep me going.
I am thinking of signing up for a September 100 mile gravel race. I enjoyed the DK homage “race” and it seems like there are a few to pick from in WY and CO in that time frame. Would Sweet Spot 4 followed by the gravel plan be the right choice? What would be the rule of thumb to pick the hilly or flat gravel plan?
Yeah sweet spot 4 into the gravel plan would be a great way to go and exactly what I would have recommended you doing. It’s all about finding ways to self motivate right now. I have a few self races selected myself and have enjoyed challenging myself. By doing this you have set yourself up well to be ready when normal racing resumes.
If your race or event will have sustained climbs of over 15 minutes than you can do the hilly plan. But the efforts of both plans are similar just the workouts are labeled a bit different. For example the flat one will have 2 x 20 minute sweet spot efforts but on the hilly plan it would say do 2 x 20 minute sweet spot climbing intervals. Just about doing the terrain that is specific towards your event. Ride the terrain that will be similar to your event and that really comes on the weekend simulation rides in both events. With a hilly / mountain race you will have more time climbing which could mean lower cadence, higher efforts while climbing and lower efforts while descending. But a flatter race would be steadier and almost no coasting.
Sorry I have to ask the question that has been asked a million times and I have probably asked it myself.
Should I do the Intermediate or Advanced?
Age = 44
Available Time = 12-15 hours per week
Level = Cat 2
Goals = national levels masters TT’s and track if someone can keep the Boulder Valley Velodrome open!!
Life = married and want to keep it that way, 2 teenage girls, and a decently stressful gig that pays the bills
Intermediate = feel like I am leaving available time on the table, weeks 1& 2 very light
Advanced = Week 3 is too much both time and ability to recover
Thoughts? Sorry again to ask the same question that always comes up!!!
Great question. So for 90% of athletes the intermediate plan is plenty. And seems like it is enough for you. By the 3rd week it is plenty of work. You don’t have to feel smashed at the end of every training ride or every week. You want to be able to recover and the training the following day and weeks without too much fatigue.
With an ultimate goal of masters TT you don’t need a ton of training time and will do better with more quality training. Really working on that 35 - 45 minute power (depending on duration of nationals).
Remember quality trumps quantity - really high power output wins bike races, not how much you can train
Sooooo would the definition of quality over quantity be going from struggling to hit an average of 345 watts for 2 sets of 4x3min efforts and then struggling to hit SS power windows the next day to averaging 365 watts for 2 sets of 2x3min efforts and then hitting the top of my SS range the following day?
Listening to the podcast the check the ego comment resonated with me.
