This plan is intended to be performed in winter at the very beginning of your new season. The plan last 10 weeks but you can re-start from week 1 if you need extra time before starting a race specific plan. The two first weeks are for general preparation then you will have 2 blocks of 4 weeks (3 with incremental load + 1 easy). At week 6 you will have a bike and run test to check your progress and to adjust training zones.
You will not find any training on Monday because is a day intended for general strength workouts.
The focus of this plan is on endurance, technique, force and speed: all abilities that should be addressed at the beginning of a new season.
The triathletes can add 2-3 swim session, possibly on free and easy days.
The target of this plan is mainly for short distance triathlons (Olympic and Sprint). For long distance triathlon you can increase the duration of bike and run sessions on Saturday and Sunday.
If you don't know your training zones, you can perform a test and obtain your Run Lactate Threshold Heart Rate and you bike FTP:
Bike Test: 25' all out ride, take the average power of the best 20'. Multiply this value by 0.95
Run test: run for 25' at max effort, take the average HR and Pace of the best 20'. Multiply these values by 0,98 and 0,95 respectively.
Training zones definition:
Z1= 72-81% LTHR (warm-up, recovery, cool down)
Z2=82-90% LTHR (endurance, fat burning)
Z3= 95-100% LTHR (sweetspot, sub-threshold)
Z4= 102-105% LTHR (super-threshold, VO2 max)
Z5= 105-115% LTHR (neuromuscular speed, anaerobic capacity)
I'm a certified Federazione Italiana Triathlon level 2 coach. Specialized in draft legal Sprint and Olympic distances with a focus on Youth and Juniors. I serve as a coach for an Italian youth triathlon team.