Excellent video on OU’s. I think these are great workouts to include in a SS progression.
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I’m not really aiming for anything in particular. I set the power target and go. Right now I’m doing all of my SS workouts at 90% of FTP. In general I’ve noticed my HR @ 90% of FTP is usually around 94-96% of my threshold HR.
I just did 1x60 @ 90% on Thursday and was happy to see 0% decoupling.
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After yesterday 2x20 SST O/U. Did i today 60min 93% and after that 45min 82% outdoor! Its all about mental 
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Question for those that have done VO2 blocks, help me learn from your mistakes.
Looking to build out a 3 week intense VO2 block as I have one final week of intensive aerobic left to do before a recovery week.
Following the protocol from the webinar the goals are to target 15-20min progressive TiZ per workout in the block aiming to do 2 VO2 workouts per week, progressing not only higher watts but also time @ VO2.
Using my optimized intervals chart I’m looking at a duration target of 5:15min between 343-363w.
Would the thinking then be I’m doing a workout progression of;
3x5min Tues with 1:1 work/rest ratio +z2
4x5min Sat…
5x5min Tues…
5x5min Sat @ higher power
…then what?
I was going to throw in an over/under progression workout on Thursdays just to keep that rolling so the week would look like this;
Mon- off
Tues - VO2 + z2 (90min)
Weds - 90min z2
Thurs - O/U progression +z2
Fri - active recovery
Sat - VO2 + z2
Sun - long 3-4hr z2
What are the thoughts?
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When was the last time you did VO2 work? 5 min is an ambitious length, especially to kick off a block.
Speaking for myself, I would start out with something like 6x3 > 4x4 > and then determine if you’re able to hold power at VO2 max and decide if 5 min is doable. The first week of a VO2 block is always torturous.
Going from 15 to 25 min of work in 7 days is a huge ask.
Additionally you could spice it up by doing some tabatas or 30/15 type VO2 work one of the days an longer duration intervals the other. Might be psychologically easier. Just an idea.
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My block I just finished I didn’t do as per webinar. I did my interpretation of KM’s blocks. All polarized, either VO2max or Z2. No need to go into more detail if you’re following Tim’s suggestion. I will say that I think the block I just did will pay dividends, but no way of proving that for a few weeks yet.
I would make those jumps a lot shorter — going from 4x4 to 4x4:30 in the past has been a big enough leap for me in a short space of timr
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When you will do 6x3 instead of 4x5 do you targetting your zones based your MMP 3’ or 5’?
For example, my 5min target is 337-344w, but my 3min is 372-380w. Based on WKO5 PD Interva targetting dashboard. (Optimized interval is 4:45 for 344-324w).
If your PD curve is ok, I would go for 5’ @ 330 Watt and start with 3 sets, progress with an extra set of 3 minutes then 5 minutes
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Hi all,
Recent convert to the KM FTP test and sweet spot progressions.
Tested today with the KM baseline test. Struggled to comprehend it beforehand, but realised during about settling in to your FTP by feel. I got to 35minutes at 245w average, but ramped too hard. I also probably could have gone a bit longer at 245w so not sure I have effectively worked out my TTE, anyway, it’s a learning process!
I now want to work on aerobic base. My question is mostly about what else to do in addition to SS progression workouts. I have tried to read the whole thread.
Plan:
2x20>2x25>1x45>3x20>1x50>2x35>1x60>4x20>1x75>2x45>1x90
Week structure:
Monday - off
Tuesday - 1hr Z2
Wednesday - SS progression #1 (mostly 1xlong interval)
Thursday - 1hr Z2
Friday - off
Saturday - SS progression #2 (2x/3x generally)
Sunday - 2hr Z2 (hopefully outdoors)
Is that an appropriate format ie just Z2 and SS progressions? Is it too little intensity? I see some people are doing O/U workouts during their progressions.
I’ve never really done any workout formats that are not in TR SSBMV or general build plans ie never done an interval >30minutes duration so I’m not sure how it’s going to feel.
Yes, I go full gas regardless of the interval length, but make sure I don’t over cook the first interval and die out on the subsequent. I don’t have a PM on my outdoor bike so I go by RPE/respiratory-rate and as hard as I can sustain. When riding on my smart trainer I’ll use power targets that align with my max-power for a given duration.
And I meant 5x3 (15 min) > 4x4 (16 min). Starting at 3’ (for me at least) is a good mental refresher for how VO2max work feels. It’s hard to just jump into 5’ intervals.
After I get a workout or two in my body I’ll naturally progress. 4x4 > 5x4 > 4x5 > 5x5 etc
I’ve observed that when I’m fit it can take 60-75s for me to hit 90% HRm or what I think is roughly 95% of VO2max. So TiZ for a 4x5 session might only be 16 min, not 20.
So the consensus above has convinced me to stay the course (thanks for the contributions) and do a FTP block then a VO2 (as oppose to the other way around).
My TTE is 32 mins, I don’t really get why that didn’t increase during the SS progression, but that’s another thing. Is this FTP workout progression sensible? Or should I be more aggressive?
3 x 10 mins
2 x 17
3 x 12
2 x 19
2 x 21
1 x 45
All at 97% FTP with 3 min recoveries.
I’m going to do 2 workouts a week. Not sure I can do a third with the running volume I’m trying to maintain as well.
I’d do three SST/Tempo workouts and two Z2 workouts. You’re doing relatively low volume, so if you want to progress, you need a bit more intensity. Try T - SST, W - Z2, R - SST or longer tempo (80-85% for a bit longer) if you’re fatigued, S - SST, Sun - long ride.
I’d also push you to increase the length of that Sunday ride progressively. But I’m coming at this knowing nothing about your background, “training age”, etc.
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Just wanted to say thank for posting this thread and the follow up to it. It definitely made a difference in how I approached my riding this fall. It has been well worth reading and working on a progression.
If we look at TR AT program…this is what it is all about.
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One thing I noticed is that your 1x50, 1x60, and 1x75’s are shorter than the preceding 2x/3x’s. I’m curious to know the reasoning for that. I’m no expert on this, but from what I’ve read on SS prog TiZ typically extends. So maybe keep those 1x’s the same TiZ as the previous. Another option could be to introduce some intensity to those shorter 1x’s by adding 30s “overs” every 5m depending on how you feel, e.g. turn off ERG and put in a 30s 110% effort.
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How did you come to 32’ TTE??
It should at least be 40’
It’s the figure WKO gives me. I’ve been doing the informal test protocol, so think it’s right. Although I may have been under representing in the sprints/1 min efforts. I am not a sprinter. Would that effect things like my FTP and TTE?
I did do a Kolie Moore test and only held it for 30 mins so I thought that made sense with the TTE.
Good question. I’m curious what others aim for too.
I aim for 155bpm building to 165bpm, if I have to. If I creep up into upper 160/lower 170s I need to cut the pace a little, or take a break and restart, or do something.
My LTHR is 173bpm. My maxHR is 190bpm. I generally see 0.5-2% decoupling over 2 hrs, depending the usual factors (sleep, hydration, fuel)
There’s no doubt HR varies day by day, but the link to RPE feels fairly consistent.
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Iam between 170-175 with LTHR 185 and 198 max. So i think 90-95% LTHR
175-176 is more when iam on 94-95% FTP.
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Ohs, my HR buddie;) Exactly the same zones and the same values for SST.
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