I was a runner for years with a volume of somewhere between 50 and 60 miles per week. About 5 years ago, after struggling with foot issues for a few years it was determined I had severe arthritis in my feet and continuing to run would negatively impact me greatly. I attempted to switch to cycling but struggled even with that. I recently realized that much of my issue was related to my shoes… that having them too narrow exacerbated the pain associated with arthritis. I recently got a pair of Sidi Mega’s and can now train relatively pain free on the bike.
During my time as a runner I was used to doing a tempo workout, an interval run and a long run with other stuff mixed in each week. I am now 54 years old, 30 pounds heavier than when I am in peak shape and what I am looking for is advice as to how to get training started on the bike. I was considering doing the following in succession:
Sweet Spot Base - Mid Vol I
General Build - Mid Vol
Sweet Spot Base - Mid Vol II
General Build - Mid Vol
The idea would be then to follow this up with a specialty phase.
If you are still here, the question is, based on your experience, am I out of my mind, or does this seem to be a reasonable approach to getting a body that was once fit back to its previous state?
I’d start with the Low Volume plans if I were you. You can always add workouts if you find that you want to do more volume.
A more typical (better?) progression of training plans would be Sweet Spot Base I, Sweet Spot Base II, General Build, and then whichever specialty plan fits in with your cycling goals.
I also agree with @qtip on starting out slow. If this is your first time doing structured training, the recommendation would be to start on the Low Volume Sweet Spot Base plan and work up from there. You can always throw in extra workouts if you feel fresh, but diving into too much stress can quickly put you into a hole that’s hard to get back from.