Do what works, but even TrainerRoad says that endurance is built over long periods of time, and power can be built (and lost) quickly.
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FWIW, Iām hitting all time high numbers now doing a Steve Neal inspired tempo/sweet spot base/build. Right now, it works out to about 8-9 hours per week.
Thatās 2 to 3 of these workouts per week (about 1.5 to 1.75 hours each). Within that workout has been a 3x20 tempo set which I just increased to 3x25.
The rest is really Z1/Z2 riding outside filler. I do think the 3 hours per week of workouts is what is making me faster right now. I piled on a lot of Z2 Oct to December.
As far as Z1/Z2 outside endurance, Iāve experimented with 5-6 hours per week up to 13 hours per week. I didnāt get amazingly fast when I went up to 13 hours per week. I got a little bit better endurance so that I could more easily do 3-4-5 hour rides without fading but no giant FTP boost.
It works for me 2 ways;
Mainly trainer during the dark winter months
After 30 yrs of endurance sports my base endurance /aerobic power is pretty good, itās my power I canāt neglect for too long as itās hard to get back.
Iām sure a coach may have me do other things but as someone once said āthe best training plan is one you can stick toā
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Have been riding on a recreational basis for a couple of years, but only seriously started structured training last November. I do about 9-10 hrs/wk., and Iām up to just over 3.3 W/kg, if the AI FTP is to be believed. I seem to do well with high volume, but I canāt imagine Iāll improve much more with respect to power, as Iām built like a twig. 
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Cycling only, about 12 - 16 hours.
Same hours, but split when running, atm that might be 4 hr cycling maintenance, 8 hours running focus.
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About 8 hours per week in the winter almost 100% on the trainer.
When I can train outdoors I get in around 10-14 hours per week with an occasional 20 hour week.
37 years old, hang around 172- 180 lbs. My FTP is decent but luckily I somewhat hit the genetic lotto and my 5 second to 5 minute power goes BRRRRRR. These days I just train for fun, the days of training like a ācat 5 proā are behind me.
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Around 16-20 hours (CTL around 125) a week on the bike so far this season (starting back in November of last year) - nearly entirely indoors. An additional 2 hours a week on core and weights
Obviously Iām doing a lot of endurance at that volume - around 4-5 of those hours would have some sort of interval in it (sweet spot and above)
Iām around 4.9 w/kg and my racing age is 40
During the summer the hours go up a little bit, but not a ton.
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Be curious to hear tooā¦but Iāve had periods where it was fairly āeasyā to hit 16-20 hours just by doing multiple rides a day. Do a 2 hour workout in the morning and a 60 min workout after work and you can hit 15 hours on 5 days before you get to the weekend. To get to 20 from there youād need to do a big weekend day and a day off obviously, or easily hit it by doing 7 days of riding.
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I try to do 4 hours each day on the weekend, sometimes as much as 5, sometimes as little as 3.5
When time and energy permits I also add endurance onto the end of my interval days - so this morning concluded like this (55 minutes of endurance after a 90 minute threshold workout):
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Iām doing 5-6 hours a week of training. 3.5 of that are on the trainer. The rest is gym, pool (I swim once a week) and outdoor rides. Iām getting fitter but not performing super well at races (Iām a cat 4).
-Hugh
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About 14-16 hours of cycling, all indoors in winter. Strength training 2 times a week. Started base with 17-21 hours per week of only Z2 training + gym.
My favorite rides are Z2 so getting volume is pretty easy. Iām around 4.3w/kg during base. 2nd year of structured training.
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i avg 6 hrs a week and i already tired. i want to salute those who can put 15 hrs or more per week. i cant do that.
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Averaging about 13-16 hrs at the moment since season started back in Oct 2021 - indoors during the week (2 x intensity days back ended with z2, other rides strictly z2 with all rides being a minimum of 90m) with outside riding at the weekend (1 x mixed bag group ride and 1 x z2 ride, both about 3.5-4 hours each).
Just tipped the 5w/kg mark based on last FTP test (KM Baseline) hovering around 63kg (FWIW this also aligns with TRās new AI detection). Coming out of base I have now started to do some VO2 work ahead of a training camp in April.
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Pretty textbook with great results. Nice.
Do you think that around 7-8 hours of training per week is enough to reach or even exceed the magic limit of 5w/kg ?
The plan looks like thisā¦ 2 x 1.5 hours during the week and 2 x 2 hours during the weekend.
Tuesday: Vo2 max or over/under intervals
Thursday: SS Intervals (3x15min, 3x20min, etc.)
Saturday: SS intervals + some endurance zone
Sunday: Endurance ride
Do you suggest something else more suitable? Maybe more ?
Whilst the intervals and workouts look pretty standard (albeit they would change based on time of year/ block etc in line with periodisation) and will fill the 7-8hrs as you note, the biggest determinate for me getting over 5w/kg was an increase in volume. Eg. an additional 8hrs on top of your plan of riding, easy and consistently.
We canāt predict if you will be able to get to a certain w/kg based on a future volume - too many variablesā; training history, current volume, genetics etc. I would focus on nailing the plan you have, enjoying the process and the outcome of it - whatever that may be, I am sure you will be faster than you are now 
Iāve ridden with a coach for the last 2 years, and been able to go from 3-5 hours or TR to almost 11.5 hours a week average.
The biggest change is of course in training methodology. For those that go āOh wow, canāt imagine doing more than 5 hoursā is probably doing too much intensityā¦ (for the most part)
Here is my average for the past 2 years - 11h
The big spikes are weeks training abroadā¦ 
In the past 2 years Iāve my progression has been:
LT1 215w to 255w
LT2 280w to 315w
Iāve had a very weak base, so weāve been addressing that during these two years, and now we are shifting more towards pushing up the ceiling!
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For some people probably.
For me, I never seemed to get much over ~4.1w/kg on that volume.
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Well done!
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Over the years, I got more sensitive to caffeine. Which sucks, because coffee is the only drug I regularly use. I found out how many cups are optimal for me: about half a cup less than I want to drink.with training it is the same for me: wanting a bit more, but not always getting it is key for me. That keeps my fire burning.
āYou can always do more.ā But is that sustainable and compatible with your other life goals and commitments? When you add a bit of work, does it add or subtract from your desire to be on the bike?
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