In terms of what effect this would have on my “hour power”. I think it would have had zero negative effects as I was diligent about throwing in a Sweet Spot ride every 10 days or so to keep that system simmering.
I did two polarized blocks and one Sweet Spot block between June and September. There wasn’t a single point during last season when I thought any sustained effort between 20-60 min was difficult other than early in the season. The point I’m making is that I saw no ill effects from doing VO2 or Z2 work.
Now, had I completely ignored that for ~6 weeks. Who knows.
After every vo2 max block first week of threshold is hard. First two workouts are usually bad, elevated HR, higher RPE, then there is some kind of “shift” and threshold starts to feel amazingly good, HR under LTHR, 80 min TiZ workouts etc.
Edit - my vo2 max blocks are two weeks long, 3x per week and rest is shorter Z2 to provide some context. This is also the reason I have a feeling that going fully polarized will still require some threshold for me so I will end with pyramidal. On the other hand workouts like SST with bursts always feel amazing after vo2 the same O/U and I agree that overs feel great.
While it might not be “the best” that’s where people overthink things. To me there was zero reason to do a TTE test after a polarized block, I did a ramp test for quick validation and got what I was looking for. Shrug.
I went back and looked at my subsequent rides post-Polarized experiment and everything got a lift. I think the problem is that folks ignore staying touched up on other energy systems. I mean no offense, but @kurt.braeckel is a prime example of this.
I had a worry about how my extensive aerobic engine would be compromised during my first polarized experiment and reached out to @brendanhousler and got some good insight which helped me adjust my approach.
Did you guys do no threshold work at all during the block, because I’m considering tacking some SS onto my Saturday vo2max workouts to try and avoid issues if possible.
I personally did not do any threshold work during the block. Every ride was either Vo2, Rest, or Z2.
From hearing some experiences of cyclists and coaches much smarter than me, it seemed that the best way to do this block was to focus only on one main adaptation.
Furthermore, in hindsight and during the block, if I were to mix in any other real intensity, my Vo2 workouts wouldn’t have had the same quality, and I do not believe I would have seen the adaptations I have. Even some of the Z2 rides had to turn into just noodling around the block
Edit note - I did 3 workouts per week for 3 week. Normally Tue, Wed, and Fri. Some people do all 3 in a row, then rest and do it again the next week. Some also do 2-a-days… I don’t think I was ready for that this time . My overall volume dropped a little bit as well, from about 9-11hrs per week to 6-8hrs per week. This was necessary to make the Vo2 sessions hard enough.
Also, the gains I’ve already seen (after dealing with a bit of a plateau pre-Vo2, and after recovering post-Vo2 block) are quite worth it… I wouldn’t worry about losing anything. I feel much better and faster on the bike in just about every way, even though only my Vo2 max “power” saw much of an increase in the first 1-2 weeks back on the bike. Now 5 weeks post-Vo2 block, my FTP and SS workouts are feeling amazing, and I feel much faster on the bike. Able to drop my buddies that were dropping me in the fall, taking KOMs that I haven’t touched in ages. N=1 here
Nope. When I am able to “properly” execute VO2 max block anything higher than middle of Z2 destroys me. Not to mention mental thing that enables survival mode named “please I do not want to suffer anymore”
Amen. I made sure I spaced my two VO2 sessions out with a minimum of 3 nights sleep. Monday VO2 max, Thursday or Friday VO2 max. I equate a truly hard VO2 max session to a really hard session in the gym. There’s no way I can do another with one night of sleep between the two.
I haven’t seen any coach prescribe VO2 max on a MWF prescription. I would argue that if you can, you’re not going hard enough. Usually there’s more days of rest between VO2 sessions.
I didn’t do any “threshold”. But I did do some 3x20, 1x45 type sweet spot work “every once in a while” during my Polarized blocks. It doesn’t need to be every week. Like I said, touch it up every 10 days or so.
After some thinking it over, I will go ahead and re-test my FTP and see where my TTE ends up and then progress through an intensive block. Thanks for sharing what you’ve done and have planned, that’s very helpful!
So I did an extensive SST block before this intensive set. So while the focus on this block is threshold I am still adding in a SST over under workout once a week to get some added stimulus without hitting more threshold which is my Tuesday and Saturday.
I picked the length really just based on trying to target 100-125% TTE while really focusing on extending the intervals to longer time as the primary goal.
Is it right? Dunno. Is it building confidence and getting me a bunch of time right below threshold without the added fatigue of threshold. Yes.
I mean we are talking a 5W decrease on 280W. If the block pays off, I expect to gain that back and then some in relatively short order. Seems my experience is kind of common for this type of training. I don’t think I could have touched up FTP during a block of 8 max VO2 intervals in 18 days. And really, not a big worry. First race is at least eight weeks away yet.
. My overall volume dropped a little bit as well, from about 9-11hrs per week to 6-8hrs per week. This was necessary to make the Vo2 sessions hard enough.