Weight Lifting and Maintaining FTP

Training
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TR Community!

44 year old male, CAT2/3 racer with about 5 years of training/racing under my belt. Was only getting about 6-7 hours or riding per week due to family obligations.

Over the past 9 months i have raised my FTP by 20%. I am choosing NOT to race due to Covid risk and a young daughter. So i am going to start off-season weight lifting this week. I plan on lifting 3 days per week which i know will have an impact not only on the volume but the intensity of my WO’s.

I would also like to try to ride 3-4 days per week, depending on fatigue.

What do you recommend in terms of length or intensity of WO’s to help me maintain my new FTP (i am sure there will be some short-term drop, which i am OK with).

Been a TR user for a few years now so if you can recommend certain WO’s that would be great as well.

Appreciate any help or anecdotal stories that will give me some insight into this.

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If you’re dropping the volume and trying to maintain or at least not lose much fitness, then intensity is the way to go. Have you looked at the Maintenance and Time Crunch plans in the Specialty phase? I would do those, and then maybe add 1 longer Z2 ride each week if you have time.

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