More questions!
I commute 8km to and from the office most day, as it gets grimmer I’ll be in the van more but there’s generally commuting most days. Not a bad trip and certainly helps my head after a day driving a desk.
My question is how much these spins will mess with the training plans?
At about 30 minutes each way, and probably an IF of .5, you’re looking at 25 TSS per day and 125 TSS per week of full commuting. That’s about the difference between low and medium volume Sweet Spot Base, and about half the TSS difference between low and medium volume build plans.
So it’s not nothing, but it’s not an insurmountable quantity of stress, either. It definitely seems worth trying… but I’d probably say to take your commutes easy and keep it pleasant, knowing that you’ll be putting in the hard work with the training plan.
If you stay in zone 1 or zone 2 it won’t be a problem, i commute every day (18km) and stay in or below zone 2. Works for me, acts like a recover ride!
One thing I’ve found that works well for me is to combine it with workouts from the plan. i.e. do your workout on the trainer, hop off, half hour on the road endurance, and do the rest of the commutes as recovery rides. Also make sure I take one day a week off commuting.