Cycling Guide. -PLUS- 40K Time Trial Training Plan

Cycling Guide -PLUS- 40K Time Trial Training Plan

YOU ARE UNIQUE. Better training is not always about finding ways to push yourself harder. In fact, more often than not it s about learning how to train smarter through discovering your own optimal blend of training impulses kind of like your own secret sauce. This balance is highly custom to each athlete both in time and in person. A diverse set of factors such as genetics, training history, gender, age, race schedule, and nutrition are just some of the contributors that make you unique as an athlete. Therefore each athlete must learn to balance every aspect of training in a manner that s as unique as we are, including especially three important elements: Duration Intensity Recovery Together these three act as powerful levers that can be pulled on to tweak training and dramatically improve it. 2

Unfortunately for most of us, what we know is not always reflected in what we do. At a philosophical level we understand the uniqueness of our person and physiology and we appreciate that there are better ways to train than others. Furthermore we acknowledge that training with a plan and purpose is far superior to aimless hours on the road. Yet far too often we fail to implement and follow a structured training plan that is unique to our capability and our goals. Those levers go unpulled, leaving training stagnant and inefficient. This is where zonebased training plans come in. 3

WHAT ARE TRAINING ZONES? Training zones are personalized levels of effort which are frequently defined by heart rate, power or pace. They are used by coaches and athletes to measure, quantify and track appropriate levels of training. WHY ARE TRAINING ZONES IMPORTANT? For endurance athletes, training with zones provides a personalized strategy for understanding the ideal intensities and durations of effort in order to optimize the results. In practice, it helps athletes identify the actual vs intended intensity of training so they can readily identify where changes need to be made. Because of the individualized nature of training zones, athletes (and their coach) have the ability to target workout goals specific to them and at the right intensity level for each workout including when to build in recovery and rest. As athletes continually update their training zones over the course of a season, those zones will evolve and improve along with the athlete. Those growth trends further serve as important indicators of improved performance over time, which can help identify which workouts an athlete responds strongest to. 4

Many endurance athletes fall into two camps of erroneous thinking. In one camp, the athletes spend all of their time doing long duration, low intensity training. They seldom vary training to include tempo, intervals, hills, or even recovery workouts. This vanilla approach to training can build a strong aerobic base but leaves the athlete deficient in areas of strength and speed. While performance gains exist, they are far below what they could be. On the opposite end of the spectrum, in the other camp, are athletes who are always pushing too hard. These athletes train for the workout rather than the race. This approach to training is also frequently unvaried which predisposes the athlete to musculoskeletal injury. Always pushing to the extreme never allows the body to either build sufficient aerobic capacity or to recover from difficult sets, which will also impede success on race day. As with most things in life, extremes can be both wasteful and dangerous. Instead, a customized zone-based approach to training blends the complexities of an athlete s unique physiology and places them on a path to new personal records. 5

TRAINING ZONES EXPLAINED. Beyond an academic definition, knowing how to actually use training zones can be confusing for many athletes. In order to clear up some of the confusion and to start moving beyond the principle into practice, let s start with an overview of the zones themselves and the goals for each one. Since each zone has a specific purpose, the physiologic response will be different for each one. ZONE 1 Active Recovery This is your active recovery zone or easy zone. This zone is important after hard races or hard training days and is also used between intervals or at the end of a workout. Conversation should be easy while training in zone 1 without labored breathing. Physiological changes (muscular or metabolic improvements) in this zone are not very significant but it is very important for helping prepare for the next work out. Base RPE (Rating of Perceived Exertion) should feel very, very light Example workout: Easy spinning or jogging for about 45 minutes Training in this zone is done as a single workout when recovery is needed. ZONE 2 This is your aerobic base zone. Training in this zone is where the bulk of training should take place for endurance sports because it is very important for building a solid foundation (base). Zone 2 training helps improve the aerobic threshold allowing athletes to maintain aerobic performance at higher workloads and improve your efficiency. You may experience low levels of fatigue in zone two and/or small amounts of cardiac drift near the end of long workouts. Typically the fatigue from training in this zone is a result of the duration of the training session rather than the intensity. 6

Conversation at this level of effort should be easy without much labored breathing. Physiological changes that take place when training in zone 2 include increased mitochondrial density and increased capillarization (the amount of mitochondria and capillaries throughout the muscle), which improves oxygen use. Both are key to prolonged aerobic performance. RPE should feel very light to fairly light Example Workout: Training sessions in this zone are often referred to as Long Slow Distance (LSD) sessions, and include longer bike rides or long runs on the weekend. Frequent or daily training in this zone is recommended. ZONE 3 Tempo Some people mistakenly refer to this zone as a gray area or a zone of little benefit. Actually you can have quite a bit of benefit with zone 3 training. In fact, a lot of people may unknowingly be racing in zone 3. For example, if you are in an event that takes you more than a couple of hours but less than about 6 hours then you will likely spend quite a bit of time in zone 3. Physiological changes include increases in the mitochondrial density and capillarization of the working muscles (even more so than zone 2) and has a larger role in muscle glycogen storage increases due to the increased reliance on carbohydrates as a fuel source. Conversation is still possible, but it will likely be more labored. RPE should feel somewhat hard Example Workout: There are two different ways to do zone 3 training, either using one long sustained effort or multiple midlong intervals. Beginners should start with intervals because the sustained effort may be quite difficult. Multiple training sessions in a row are possible in this zone but it requires more recovery for the body to bounce back and do them on back to back days because of the higher intensity. You may be asking why not just train in zone 3 then instead of zone 2? While it is true that in zone 3 you still get some of the same major physiological changes that you get in zone 2, the duration of training sessions in zone 3 is shorter. In zone 3 you are past your aerobic threshold so your body responds by producing more 7

your body responds by producing more energy through anaerobic means. This results in an elevated but manageable blood lactate level and helps to increase sustainable effort. It does not however help increase your long term aerobic capacity by producing the overload your aerobic system needs. So with the lower sustainable volume of zone 3 compared with zone 2, it is essential to properly train and increase your mileage in zone 2 for long term success. acclimated to what race pace feels like for shorter distance races. Training in zone 4 on consecutive days is typically not done unless previous zone 4 work was only a portion of total workout and you are sufficiently recovered in order to maintain zone 4 intensity. This helps to avoid overtraining and fatigue. ZONE 4 Sub-Threshold Training in this zone helps to increase lactate threshold. You still get many of the zone 3 benefits, but the sustainable effort in zone 4 training is shorter. Conversation should be difficult due to labored breathing making the effort mentally difficult to sustain. Physiological changes that occur in this training zone include increased lactate threshold and mitochondrial enzymes (which help in anaerobic energy production). RPE in this zone should feel hard. Example Workout: Long intervals at threshold make a great workout for zone 4. These types of workouts get the mind and body ZONE 5a Supra-Threshold Zone 5a training also helps develop lactate threshold. In fact, there are some in the scientific community that report zone 4 and 5a as the same zone and simply refer to it as Threshold. Everything above lactate threshold is zone 5 but varying intensities above threshold are designated by the letters a, b and c due to the different adaptations the body makes. As with sub-threshold training, intervals are a great way to work in this zone and help your body adapt to the lactate accumulation from being beyond threshold. Conversation in this zone will be labored and require mental focus. Physiological changes include increased lactate threshold and increased buffering capacity 8

(ability for your body to clear the excess hydrogen ions produced associated with lactate production) due to training beyond the lactate threshold, anaerobic energy production and cardiovascular efficiency. RPE should be between hard and very hard Example Workout: Intervals can be done various ways but usually are designed using 2-12 minute intervals and a 4:1 work to rest ratio. For example, if you do 6 minute intervals you get 1.5 minutes rest. Multiple training sessions in zone 5a are difficult due to the intensity of training and is not recommended. VO2 MAX VO2 MAX training is what places the largest load on your cardiovascular system to improve oxygen uptake capacity. ZONE 5b Conversation is usually not possible Physiological changes include improvements in stroke volume (amount of blood the heart can pump with each beat), cardiac output and plasma volume are the major physiological changes that occur which help improve VO2MAX. RPE should feel very hard Example Workout: Training in this zone is done by interval training using medium duration (approx. 3-8 minute) work efforts followed by an equal rest interval. Research has shown that intervals at vvo2max (velocity at VO2MAX) is the best way to improve maximal oxygen uptake capacity. Training sessions in this zone cannot be of great length (30-45 minutes of zone work at most) due to the high intensity and fatigue associated with such sessions. Multiple days of training is not recommended (we recommend no more than every two to three days). ZONE 5c Anaerobic Capacity Zone 5c training develops high intensity and high power sprint ability. These training sessions are also conducted using intervals but of a very short duration ranging from seconds to a couple of minutes at most. Conversation is not possible Physiological improvements involve 9

increased buffering capacity, and muscular power development. RPE should be very, very hard to maximal all out efforts Example Workout: 100m sprints or :12s max sprints on a bike with about 3-5 minutes rest. Multiple days of this training is not recommended Now that we have a general understanding of the terms and definitions, it s time to move from the classroom to the laboratory. In our first lab session we will discuss several methods for determining your training zones. Then in the second part how to implement those training zones into a training plan suited for your race distance. In this section you will find several examples of custom training plans for a variety of race distances, depending on the sport type you selected. DETERMINING YOUR TRAINING ZONES. Regardless of which of the three methods below you decide to use, determining your training zones are the absolute first step for training smarter. You will want to select the method below that is most suitable to you and that you will be willing to repeat every 6-8 weeks. Due to the ever-changing nature of your fitness (either improved conditioning or de-conditioning) frequent updates to your training zones are a must. Periods longer than two months will mean that your training zones on paper no longer reflect your internal physiology. 10

FIELD TESTING For cyclists, training power zones are established in a very similar way as for runners. This involves a 30 minute bike test at maximal exertion. The only difference is that the average power for the entire 30 minutes is an approximation of your FTPw (Functional Threshold Power wattage). Guidelines for the field test are as follows: 1. You must have a power meter. 2. The test can be completed on the road or on an indoor trainer. 3. Duration is 30 minutes at maximal steady intensity (this means the absolute highest wattage you can maintain for the entire time). Be aware that most people doing this test go too hard the first few minutes and then gradually decrease wattage for the remainder. That will give you inaccurate results. 4. The test should be done alone, not during a race or with friends as it will artificially increase results. 5. Use a stop watch to time the length of the test. 6. You will need to collect the average wattage output for the entire last 20 minutes 7. If you find yourself increasing or decreasing wattage at any time during the test, stop, wait at least two days to recover, and start over. E.g. do not go easy for 10 minutes and then push hard with 20 minutes remaining. It s 30 minutes all out. Your average heart wattage for that final 20-minute portion is close to your FTPw. Calculate this average and write the number down. This will next be used to calculate your cycling training zones using the guide at the end of this section. As with LTHR testing, the more times you do this test the more accurate the results will become since there is a learning curve associated with such an effort. You will learn to control intensity better at the start, so that you don t start too hard, forcing you to ease up during the test or vice versa. No matter your accuracy in completing the test, however, a field 11

test is only an approximation. There are more accurate and reproducible means of determining training zones which we will discuss next. BLOOD TESTING If field testing requires little additional equipment and through its convenience sacrifices accuracy, blood lactate testing is the effective opposite. Blood lactate testing involves visiting a human performance laboratory where research scientists can directly measure your energy systems and training zones using repeated blood draws. This test also involves an approximately 30-minute effort but rather than being all out the entire time, involves a slow increase from low to high exertion over the course of the test. This makes it an easier test for many athletes to complete. Whereas athletes less frequently avail themselves of this technique due to its high per test cost (usually around $100-150 USD) and invasive nature (needles!) it is highly accurate. It has been a preferred technique used by Olympians and other professional athletes and coaches worldwide for forty years. If you are interested in this method, complete a quick Google search for lactate threshold test or human performance lab in your area. Just remember to recomplete a test every couple months to keep the zones updated. 12

BSXinsight Each of the preceding methods for determining training zones has their advantages and disadvantages. Field testing is easy and cheap but sacrifices accuracy. Blood testing is expensive, invasive, and inconvenient but is highly accurate. So for those who want their cake and to eat it too, there is a third option that combines ease and convenience with gold standard scientific accuracy. That is through BSXinsight, the world s first ever wearable lactate threshold sensor. BSXinsight the only device to measure your lactate threshold and automatically determine your personalized training zones as you train. BSXinsight uses the same technology as the experts yet speaks the same language as your coach, so for the first time ever, you ll know how your body is responding without lab visits or blood draws. You can even put away your excel spreadsheet and calculator because BSXinsight does all the work for you. BSXinsight is a small wearable sensor embedded in a comfortable calf compression sleeve. It is worn during a 30 minute ramp test (transitioning from low to hard intensity) similar to that done at a performance laboratory. However instead of needles, BSXinsight used light to look inside your body. As the light array passes through your muscle tissue, it s reshaped by the biochemical characteristics of your tissue that are unique to you. This creates a biosignal that s captured and processed by BSX algorithms to generate a real-time lactate threshold curve that s as accurate as previous blood-based methods. BSXinsight turns every home gym, treadmill and indoor trainer, into a state-ofthe art training facility. You can learn more at BSXinsight.com or by emailing us at info@bsxinsight.com. 13

TRAINING PLAN 40K TIME TRIAL (12 WEEKS) Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Week 1 3x(2min Zone 4 3min Recovery) Week 2 3x(3min Zone 4 Week 3 1:30* - Power 3x(2min Zone 5 2x(4min Zone 4 6min Recovery) 3x(3min Zone 4 5 min Recovery) 3x(4min Zone 4 8min Recovery) Week 4 1 Hour Zone 1 2x(8min Zone 4 12min Recovery) Week 5 1:30* - Power 4x(1min Zone 5 2min Recovery) Week 6 4x(5min Zone 4 5min Recovery) Week 7 1:30* - Power 4x(1min Zone 5 2min Recovery) Week 8 1:30* - Power 6x(2min Zone 5 2min Recovery) Week 9 1:30* - Power 10x(1min Zone 5 1min Recovery) Week 10 1:30* - Power 4x(3min Zone 5 3min Recovery) Week 11 1:30* - Power 3x(2min Zone 5 2min Recovery) Week 12 1:30* - Power 4x(2min Zone 5 2min Recovery) 1:30* - VO2 6x(:15sec Zone 5b :30sec Recovery) 4x(2min Zone 4 5x(3min Zone 4 6min Recovery) 6x(5min Zone 4 8min Recovery) 2x(8min Zone 4 10min Reovery) 4x(3min Zone 4 6min Recovery) 5x(2min Zone 4 5min Recovery) 4x(4min Zone 4 8min Recovery) 30min Zone 1 Update Zones with BSXinsight 1:00* - Power 3x(2min Zone 5 3min Recovery) 1:00* - LT 4x(4min Zone 4 8min Recovery) 2:30* - LT 3x(10min Zone 4 10min Recovery) 2:30* - LT 4x(15min Zone 4 10min Recovery) 2:00* - Tempo 4x(10min Zone 3 5min Recovery) 2:30* - Tempo 5x(8min Zone 3 45min Zone 1 45min Zone 1 1 Hour Zone 1 30min Zone 1 1:00* - LT 5x(2min Zone 4 1:00* - VO2 10x(:30sec Zone 5b :30sec Recovery) 3:00* - LT 2x(20min Zone 4 10min Recovery) 2:30* - LT 4x(10min Zone 4 8min Recovery) Update Zones with BSXinsight 30min Zone 1 3:00* - LT 4x(15min Zone 4 10min Recovery) 1:00* - VO2 10x(:20sec Zone 5b :30sec Recovery) 1:00* - VO2 20x(:15sec Zone 5b :45sec Recovery) 1:00* - VO2 10x(:20sec Zone 5b :15sec Recovery) 2:00* - LT 4x(15min Zone 4 10min Recovery) 2:30* - LT 5x(8min Zone 4 10min Recovery) 3:00* - LT 4x(20min Zone 4 15min Recovery) 30min Zone 1 Race 1:00* - Tempo 2x(10min Zone 3 5min Recovery) 1:30* - Tempo 4x(10min Zone 3 5min Recovery) 1:30* - Tempo 5x(8min Zone 3 1:30* - Tempo 4x(6min Zone 3 1:30* - Tempo 6x(4min Zone 3 1:30* - Tempo 3x(8min Zone 3 1:30* - Tempo 2x(8min Zone 3 Legend Time in hours* - Focus Workout *Done in Zone 2 ride with workout completed in the middle of the ride 14