I’d be following the 6 week model of SSB1 and SSB2, probably using every other sweet spot week and replacing the ones in between with the longer zone 2 weeks.
Has anybody tried something similar to this with luck? I would love to do a full traditional base but not sure if I can make that time commitment. Every other week on the other hand is doable. Also I tend to get burnt out pretty quickly on the full SSB1/SSB2 approach, so I think splitting up those sweet spot weeks with some longer outdoor rides would really help me stay focused and more excited about training.
I’m curious to see how you find it. I suspect you’d prob get better results with a few weeks of Z2, then a 3 week SS block. But what the hell, it’s worth a try!
I have great results with SS base, from a power standpoint, but I end up burning out and never have a consistent season. I feel like SS base isn’t giving me a real platform to get through an entire season on. I get like 3-4 months of gaining strength, and then just feel overworked and drop off. I think lack of base is definitely my weakness in the past few years.
That seems to happen to me quite frequently. Ive gotten off the Plan Builder for now and just use TrainNow. Ive been doing 3 or 4 Endurance rides to 1 Sweet Spot. Then throwing in a Vo2 every 10 days. I seem to be fresher so far. SweetSpot is great for muscle endurance but it can tax me over time. By the time I get to Build, Im overcooked. True Z2 can be mentally brutal as it is sloooow but it works. Did a strict Polarized in 2019. Nice long Base where my HR was 110-115bpm. In Spring Summer group rides my HR avg for those rides fell 15 bpm and I was at the same FTP as achieved with SSB but I wasnt burned out.
Not quite what was asked but I’ve been using the polarised plans for my base. Slightly modified lv to add another outside z2 in the week then just ride however it happens on Saturday.
The bulk of it being slow has helped my consistency and so far not in a hole. I’m hoping to slowly see some FTP improvement at the end of this block.
Another nice thing is that after a z2 session I’m not so dead I can do some kettle bells to build some off the bike strength too.
Might want to add some more intensity in the new year but so far it’s looking good.
No not necessarily, I would just pull the week’s workouts from trainerroad’s sweet spot base plan for whatever week of base I’m in. So basically, do week 1 of sweet spot base as defined by the plan (mid vol), week 2 all zone 2 rides, do week 3 of SSB plan, week 4 zone 2, etc…
I don’t know if skipping weeks of sweet spot (jumping from week 1 to 3) would present any problems over the course of the 12 week base plan… may be better to just do the first 3 weeks of SSB over the course of 6 weeks, instead of pulling weeks 1, 3, and 5. Either way, the weeks in-between would consist of 10+ hours of zone 2 only.
