TR snuck in a new “Recovery” Difficulty Level in one of the recent updates. Their support article is not updated yet, so will be interesting to read more about it once that happens.
I stumbled on them when viewing workouts during my Recovery Week:
Checking it out from the Workout library, there is a new filter (or one I’ve never noticed). Interestingly and presumably related to my current Endurance PL of 7.6, there are some fairly long and intense workouts that fall into this filter.
Seems this TR version is more about stuff you’d have as an option/assigned during a “recovery week”, which may differ from a “recovery ride” in the old/traditional sense?
This other “Active Recovery” filter gives the same results in the reversed, highest WoL filter order:
I noticed this last night when I loaded up Birch. I had some SS on the calendar, but just couldn’t and substituted 45 minutes of endurance as a “something is better than nothing” type ride. I had just accepted a new AI FTP so all my PLs had dropped. I did get a bump in my Endurance PL.
Yeah, I had a bit in my OP about what I have always understood as a “Recovery Ride” being 60mins or less and no more than 65% FTP or so (but stripped it during an edit). Those fly in the face of that concept per my eyes.
Could be a different take by them in context of a person’s Endurance PL, but still seems a bit off to me.
Bays +1 listed as a recovery ride has to be a mistake. Support ticket? Even below your PL as far as it is, riding that intensity for an hour with 4 sprints is not recovery. That and Andrews +1, man, they’re just really missing the boat there IMO.
I agree is sure seems odd, which is partly why I shared those bits. I was waiting to submit until they “officially” announce it, because maybe this is a “slip” or some other early access thing vs fully fledged release?
I will start with a direct tag to @ZackeryWeimer here (in case he hasn’t seen it) and see what he has to offer.
Yeah my Endurance PL is 3.5, going through the Z2 workouts by TSS, Boising 3.6, 86 TSS is productive but Gibbs +1 5.5 90 TSS is recovery, while Gibraltar -3 5.1 87 TSS is a stretch.
So its like some of the Z2 workouts whether they are productive, stretch or whatever are now listed as recovery. I wonder if I did Fletcher 4.1 which would be productive for me in Z2 if it would increase my PL despite not being listed as productive.
For sure, if you do a workout that is higher than your current PL, you will get that new level assigned. These Difficulty Levels are essentially just labels or tags.
They are secondary to the numerical values, and meant to make it easier to consider the probably effort of any given workout compared to your current PL state. They don’t control or limit AT in any way.
