THE PLAN
Your Functional Threshold Power is a key cycling metric. It essentially attempts to pinpoint the power output at which your body switches from working with enough oxygen to buffer the build up of lactate and concentration of hydrogen ions in your blood and muscles to working more and more in the absence of sufficient oxygen.

In short, increase your FTP and you will become a stronger cyclist!

This 12-week plan is designed for those that have perhaps had a bit of a lay-off from training or are returning from injury/illness. Follow the plan consistently and respect the recovery protocol (see below) and you have every chance of becoming a much stronger rider by the end of the 12-weeks!

WHY NOT PURCHASE THIS PLAN FOR A DISCOUNT AT THE RIAK FITNESS WEBSITE: https://riak.fitness/product-category/training-plan/

RECOVERY PROTOCOL
We don't ascribe to the traditional model of 3-4weeks loading followed by 1 week unloading, with only the one rest day a week. This is because this model is not based on science and to be frank, you need recovery when you need recovery!

So our approach is to have regular recovery days to encourage you to chip away at accruing fatigue. The hope being that you are able to achieve greater consistency due to the fact a recovery day is never too far away to freshen you up.

The plan is flexible but we strongly encourage to try to adhere to the recovery every 3-4 days principle we have structured this plan around

WHAT YOU WILL NEED
In order to follow this plan, you will need:

– a Training Peaks account;
– a turbo trainer which is either a smart trainer/bike or a basic trainer with a power meter on your bike;
- access to some sort of training platform to perform the sessions on. Our recommendation would be our training partners, IndieVelo.

We would also recommend purchasing a Training Peaks premium subscription for the duration of this plan to enable you to move your sessions around to suit (within the recommendations above) and so that you can more easily interpret and collate your data in-line with the instructions in this plan.

Otherwise, best of luck with the plan and please ensure you look after yourself and don’t take any unnecessary risks with your safety, health or mental well-being.