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Plan Description
Even fitness maintenance needs a plan!
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Here's a basic 1-week in-season plan. Riders can apply it to any week when they want some solid structured training.
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One day of short intensity. One day of long intensity. And one day of long endurance. The remaining days are either active recovery rides or rest days.
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This plan uses the Workout Builder. So every workout can be downloaded as a Workout File for your compatible device, making follow-along super easy.
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DOWNLOAD it to your own TrainingPeaks account today and have a go-to maintenance training week ready-to-apply!
Stats
Average Weekly Breakdown
| Workouts | Weekly Average | Longest Workout |
|---|---|---|
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9:51 hrs | 3:00 hrs |
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—— | —— |
| Workouts Per Week | Weekly Average | Longest Workout | |
|---|---|---|---|
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9:51 hrs | 3:00 hrs | |
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—— | —— |
Training Load By Week
Sample Day 1
Intro • Spinning easily - extremely easily - really helps to speed muscle recovery because it uses the natural pumping action of the legs to stimulate blood circulation and the elimination of intra-muscle metabolic waste products. This workout is best done alone. Can be done later in the day of a really hard workout (e.g. intervals or hill repeats) for 15-30 minutes to jump-start your restoration and recovery processes.
Warm-up • This whole workout is extremely easy, so there is no need for a specific warm-up period.
Main part • Ride in Z1 on a flat course in your small chainring. If a flat course isn't available, then use your rollers or a trainer. Stay seated and ride at or slightly above your usual cadence. At no time should you stray any higher than HR Z1. Make sure you keep drinking (water and/or an electrolyte beverage) during the ride, even though you're not really exerting yourself.
Cool-down • Again, as the whole workout should be light and easy there is no need for a specific cool down period. You should feel really "fresh" when you're finished.
Post-ride • Stretch if you want to.
Sample Day 2
Into • Not only do these intervals build your anaerobic capacity, but there is evidence that they help build endurance because these stimulate the production of the enzyme citrate. Citrate is a marker for a muscle's ability to utilize oxygen.
Warmup • Spin in Z1 for 10-20mins. Then follow this progression:
Z2 - 5mins
Z3 - 3mins
Z4/5 - 2mins
Z2 - 3mins
2x10s Sprints with 50s rest between.
Z2 - 5 mins.
Main Part • Repeat the following 4-6x:
Sprint 30s with 4mins Z2 recovery. Drive each sprint all the way, shifting as you get on top of each gear. Sit for approximately the last 15s as you drive to the end.
Cooldown • Ride easy, Z1-Z2 for 10 to 20 minutes.
Sample Day 3
Intro • Aerobic maintenance and endurance training, targeting HR/Power Zones 1 and 2, RPE 9-12.
Warm-Up • Spend at least 10mins (and up to 20mins if the ride is longer than 1:30hrs) bringing your HR/Power up to the top end of Z1 / RPE 9. As a suggestion, you can start pedaling at 60rpm and increase by 5rpm each minute until you are spinning at more than 100rpm.
Main Part • Keep your exertion mainly around RPE 9-11 (the transition area of Z1 to Z2). Use a route with some rolling hills (nothing too steep or long, though). Keep your cadence mostly between 90 to 100rpm. Try to “use your gears, save your legs” whenever you climb. This means staying seated and using easier gears, keeping your cadence above 80rpm. No grinding. No out-of-the saddle hammering. This might mean your exertion moves to the top end of Z2 / RPE 12 on the hills. Can be a controlled group ride (no attacking!). You can also use an indoor trainer and shift gears to simulate hills.
Cool Down • Spend the last 5mins of the planned riding time dropping the HR/Power to the bottom end of Z1, with very little tension in your legs.
Post Ride • If the ride has been more than about 1:30hrs, drink 8-16oz. of a recovery beverage (commercial beverage or chocolate milk or a homemade carb/protein drink).
Sample Day 4
This ride should be on your TT bike or pursuit set-up on your track bike.
Intro • This workout builds your time trial abilities, getting you to work on a relaxed aerodynamic position, focusing on your breathing, time-trial cadence and mental focus.
Warm-up • Spend at least 10mins (and up to 20mins if the ride is longer than 1:30hrs) in Z1-Z2. As a suggestion, you can start pedaling at 60rpm and increase by 5rpm each minute until you are spinning at more than 100rpm.
Main part • On your trainer, or on a mostly flat course outside, ride 3 work intervals that are 6 minutes long with 3 minutes recovery between intervals. Focus on a smooth aerodynamic position, and work at your preferred time trial cadence. Each work interval should be in the top half of Z4 (RPE 15 to 17). Mentally, divide each work interval in 4 x 1:30mm:ss chunks. In the 1st chunk, think "Don't start TOO hard". In the 2nd, really focus into getting the RPE just right. In the 3rd chunk, prepare to be mentally challenged with thoughts that you really can't continue at that pace - FIGHT those thoughts. In the 4th chunk, tell yourself you can do ANYTHING for only 1:30mm:ss more. During each recovery portion, relax and pedal very easily in Z1-Z2.
Cool-down • Spend the rest of the planned workout time in Z1-Z2 as a basic Enduro ride, with the last 5mins of the planned riding time dropping the HR to the bottom end of Z1, with very little tension in your legs
Sample Day 5
Intro • Spinning easily - extremely easily - really helps to speed muscle recovery because it uses the natural pumping action of the legs to stimulate blood circulation and the elimination of intra-muscle metabolic waste products. This workout is best done alone. Can be done later in the day of a really hard workout (e.g. intervals or hill repeats) for 15-30 minutes to jump-start your restoration and recovery processes.
Warm-up • This whole workout is extremely easy, so there is no need for a specific warm-up period.
Main part • Ride in Z1 on a flat course in your small chainring. If a flat course isn't available, then use your rollers or a trainer. Stay seated and ride at or slightly above your usual cadence. At no time should you stray any higher than HR Z1. Make sure you keep drinking (water and/or an electrolyte beverage) during the ride, even though you're not really exerting yourself.
Cool-down • Again, as the whole workout should be light and easy there is no need for a specific cool down period. You should feel really "fresh" when you're finished.
Post-ride • Stretch if you want to.
Sample Day 6
Intro • Aerobic maintenance and endurance training, targeting HR/Power Zones 1 and 2, RPE 9-12.
Warm-Up • Spend at least 10mins (and up to 20mins if the ride is longer than 1:30hrs) bringing your HR/Power up to the top end of Z1 / RPE 9. As a suggestion, you can start pedaling at 60rpm and increase by 5rpm each minute until you are spinning at more than 100rpm.
Main Part • Keep your exertion mainly around RPE 9-11 (the transition area of Z1 to Z2). Use a route with some rolling hills (nothing too steep or long, though). Keep your cadence mostly between 90 to 100rpm. Try to “use your gears, save your legs” whenever you climb. This means staying seated and using easier gears, keeping your cadence above 80rpm. No grinding. No out-of-the saddle hammering. This might mean your exertion moves to the top end of Z2 / RPE 12 on the hills. Can be a controlled group ride (no attacking!). You can also use an indoor trainer and shift gears to simulate hills.
Cool Down • Spend the last 5mins of the planned riding time dropping the HR/Power to the bottom end of Z1, with very little tension in your legs.
Post Ride • If the ride has been more than about 1:30hrs, drink 8-16oz. of a recovery beverage (commercial beverage or chocolate milk or a homemade carb/protein drink).
Sample Day 7
Into • Stimulate the levels of Free Fatty Acids (FFAs) which indicates an increased use of fat as an energy source for easy and moderate intensities. This workout is done FIRST THING IN THE MORNING, on an empty stomach before eating anything. Stored liver glycogen levels will be very low, with only stored muscle glycogen available. Since the stored muscle glycogen levels aren't that great, the body will use them up rather quickly and then be forced to use fat as the primary energy source - easy enough for Type I muscle fibres, but more difficult for Type IIA fibres. If this ride can be done at a high enough intensity (Z3), requiring the recruitment of the Type IIA fibres, it should start the body producing more of the enzymes required to mobilize fat as a fuel source for those Type IIA fibres.
Warm Up • Ride for about 5 minutes to get your HR into Z2.
Main Part • Bring your HR/Power firmly into Z3, and try to keep it in Z3 for the rest of the ride. Ride for the scheduled duration (including the warm-up), AND NO MORE. Only drink water during this ride. Pay attention to your speed while on the trainer - if you start to find your speed really dropping while keeping at the target HR, or if you can't keep the effort up at the target HR/Power, then stop the workout and eat a carb/protein recovery beverage or complete meal immediately.
Cool Down • There is no real cool-down phase to this workout.
Post Ride • Eat or drink a carb/protein meal immediately when finishing this workout (chocolate milk is quick and convenient), and then have a complete breakfast after you've cleaned up.