This is how I train. Background, I’m a bit of a training nerd. I’ve been cycling since I was 15 which was 32 years ago (!!) I was o.k. ish and rode a fair few races in France and Kermeses in Belgium and trained 20 ish hours a week and am now firmly in the Dad zone. 47, family, 6-7 hours training per week, can still sprint and can hang with the 20 ish year olds when they catch us on the local drop ride. I’m definitely in the short power, sprinter type. Every bit of success I ever had racing was in sprinting from smaller groups.
With that said, here goes. All my training is based around zone 2. (defined as can carry out a conversation but the person would definitely know I was doing exercise). Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, 1 hour at Z2 on the turbo. Saturday, group ride which is some Z2 but also threshold and VO2 max and sprint efforts usually ends up being 2 hours. Sunday between 1 and 2 hours Z2.
So you can see Z2 is the bulk of my training. The thing is though that, if I get on my bike Tuesday and feel great, that Z2 can easily become a Z3 Tempo ride, maybe even getting up to SS. Same for any of the other days (except the Saturday). Also, if I get on the bike and don’t feel good, that Z2 can be a very low Z2 or even Z1. And, if I get on and it is just not happening, I get off again. I’m always aware with the intensity of my perceived lactate levels, I never get to the point of “feeling” any lactate production. Every 3 or 4 weeks I often have 3 days off as I get a bit of built up fatigue.
It’s kind of adaptive training but using your own feedback. It works great for me. My power has fairly steadily increased since doing this program, I don’t get burned out, I don’t feel like my training negatively impacts my energy for the rest of my life.
I did used to do TrainerRoad (mid volume SS program) but for me, going straight into those SS intervals meant my anaerobic system was doing a lot of the work. Also, your body is really different on different days. Although it’s appealing, just getting on and doing the numbers that a general program suggests is way too crude. Somedays, you’re flying and need to up the intensity or duration, somedays the opposite. Of course my approach does require you to really listen to your body and know what it’s saying which does take time. I think TR is great for people who are new or have no idea about training but I do think that general programs are a nice idea but are basically flawed unless you use them just as a guide and if you’re doing that, do you really need such a granular type aproach like in TR? Saying that, for anyone probably up to intermediate level of understanding I think TR is great. Your mileage may (will) differ.
I’m old school and just call it endurance 
and steer clear of the zone2 hype and debates.
Good post OP. I pretty much was doing the same thing with one hard effort thrown in on a Tuesday or Wednesday, which was something like 10min at vo2 or some intervals. Then I’d do a big 3-4hr ride Saturday with z2 and intervals. Sunday as z2 if lucky, but usually Sunday and Monday as off days. In in my 30s, but dad mode as well. I did that for the past 12-18mo. I’m doing a bit more now since schedule allows, but that’s just 1.5hr instead of 1hr tues-thurs, everything else about the same. Keep it simple!
Nice, yes efforts Tuesday or Wednesday is a good shout so long as you can recover. It really can be pretty simple right! Weirdly it does take quite a lot of experience to keep it simple as you have to rely on your own perceived feeling to guide you which does take a minute to get.
Yes! It’s funny, I often say to my partner, oh my god, this IDIOT on the forum thinks that you should train at a slightly different intensity to what I think you should. They think it should be mainly 80% FTP and I think you should be mainly at 70% FTP so obviously that person is an utter IDIOT! That way I point out to myself the absurdity of the whole thing! It really is comical how we get so upset about Z2’s and SS’s and all that!
Your approach doesn’t really sound like z2 training. It sounds like you just ride your bike and listen do whatever you feel like doing. Which tbh is great, but isn’t really a training approach.
Maybe it’s just a more evolved training approach? Watching the numbers on the screen that a pre programmed general off the shelf program gives you may feel more “proper”. But it’s a little too simple to really be really effective. In my opinion.
Hard disagree. Following a “general off the shelf” program, with solid consistency will get you 90+% there. Nuance might give you that extra marginal gain. In my opinion 
I totally agree that it will get you 90% there which is why it’s perfect for those with beginner to intermediate level experience. After that, I think it’s limited.
Isn’t that exactly what its supposed to do? Anything after that requires a coach, be it yourself or another person?
Yes it is doing exactly what it’s supposed to do. I was detailing what works for me and also what might work for people who are a bit more experienced.
I think the primary assumption is that because you made some progress what you’re doing is the best approach. What you don’t know is whether you could do better with a structured plan.
No, I have 30 years of training experience, I have done plenty of structured plans. Most recently a few years ago of Trainerroad which was pretty terrible for me. With great emphasis on the “for me” part. My current plan is actually quite structured, if you looked at my training peaks volumes and TSS’s and over all ramp rates you’d guess I was on a structured plan. It’s not just get on and see how it goes.
I’d just weigh in here having done a few years of TR with as much fidelity as I could, being 49 with active kids/job/life stress etc. I have certainly found the recovery side - absorbing the value of hard sessions - to be a limiter. I have begun to modify the schedule to a hard Tuesday, a more endurance or tempo based Thursday, and a threshold attempt Saturday with the option for fun outside riding Sunday. I love the trainer road plans and the theory behind them, but if your stress load in life and ability to sleep and recover are suboptimal, it can be hard to realize the gains from all that work. AT is making all this better, but for older otherwise busy riders, awoffinden may be speaking to us. Thanks for the post.
You are more than welcome! And yes I have found the very same thing myself. A 20 year old with little job stress and no family really can’t have the same program as a 40+ year old with stressful job and a family. I don’t think this is really that acknowledged and I’m not sure that it can be built into a plan. As you say, I guess AT can make it better. For me though, I’ll get to one day and for no apparent reason I’ll be flying, that day I’ll bump up the intensity and other days the opposite. Just this week, I did my usual weights on Tuesday, DOMS Wednesday and feeling tired but flying on the bike. If AT could predict that I’d be pretty surprised!