It's time to elevate your anaerobic threshold — or in plain terms, your FTP.
We're aiming to raise the highest power you can sustain for around an hour: your functional threshold power. Push that number up and the benefits show up below threshold too — your Z2 and Z3 power climb right along with it, so your all-day cruising speed gets faster, not just your race-pace ceiling.
Who is this plan for?
Anyone with a reasonable base of cycling-specific fitness — you've been riding consistently for the last 12-16 weeks, averaging 6-8 hours a week. Maybe you've trained purely on feel until now and want the structure a proper block brings.
This plan is built around aerobic power. There's work above threshold in here too, but the bulk of the training is aerobic by design — that's where the research points for building a durable, higher FTP. If you're prepping specifically for a criterium or road race, this will absolutely help, but you'll want a race-specific sharpening block on top of it. For the club ride, gran fondo, or sportive rider, this is built for you directly — and it's an excellent base to build a race block onto later.
How the plan is structured
16 weeks, split into 4 blocks of 4 weeks. Each block ends with a deload week — volume drops by roughly 25-30% and you get an extra rest day — so you arrive at the next block recovered rather than digging out of a hole. You'll retest FTP at the start of week 9, once the second deload has cleared the fatigue, and again after week 16, so you've got a clean before/after picture of your progress, not just how you feel.
Block 1 (Weeks 1-4) — Tempo/Sweet Spot + Neural Drive
Sweet spot work has consistently shown strong FTP gains in trained amateurs without the toll of full threshold sessions, so it's the right place to start loading. Short, sharp neuromuscular efforts — sprints, high cadence drills — run alongside it, keeping recruitment sharp and adding variety before the harder blocks land. If time is tight this block, sweet spot/tempo takes priority over Z2.
Block 2 (Weeks 5-8) — Threshold + Strength
With an aerobic base laid down, we move to threshold-specific intervals to directly target the number we're trying to shift, paired with strength work — low cadence, high force efforts — to build the muscular capacity that supports higher sustained power.
Block 3 (Weeks 9-12) — VO2max + Endurance Z2 (Polarised)
After two blocks of moderate-intensity loading, we deliberately swing polarised: genuinely hard VO2max intervals paired with genuinely easy Z2 volume, cutting out the grey zone in between. VO2max work raises your aerobic ceiling, and that has a well-documented trickle-down effect on threshold — plus the shift in stimulus helps keep things fresh mentally after two blocks of grinding it out.
Block 4 (Weeks 13-16) — Anaerobic Capacity + Tempo
The final block adds top-end work — anaerobic capacity intervals — which still carries aerobic crossover benefit, alongside tempo to hold onto what you've built. It's the most varied, engaging block in the plan, which matters most right when motivation typically dips toward the end of a training cycle. Week 16 is a de-load week and taper with a retest the following week, so you finish the plan on a number, not just a feeling.
Hi, my name is Colin from Tried and Tested Cycle Coaching. I've been cycling for 15+ years and my primary focus has been on the road, both in terms of road racing and time trials with a high degree of success. I've learnt a lot in those years from reading and studying the science and from listening to others, that journey never stops. I still enjoy racing at a high level in the amateur ranks as a master and I'm now looking to pass on that knowledge and help others achieve their goals.