Cycling Workouts: Discussion/Encouragement/Sharing/Banter

[IrishAl]

Vo2 max for me today. 4 x 7 x 30 / 30. A hard one but held it right till last interval.

Another nasty workout. I’d say that would be a tough a mental challenge pushing for the last set of 7 but great to know you’re almost completed.

I’ve 3 x 15 mins at FTP tomorrow on my commute. Not looking forward to it tbh - getting a clear run at a 15 min effort isn’t easy where I live. This workout will be the guts of 1.5 hours - 40 mins more than my normal commute so I’m thinking of heading the opposite direction for my warm up and first interval. Plus I’m forced onto my TT bike as the road bike is out for repairs. Be thinking of me at 7am tomorrow 😂

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Another nasty workout. I’d say that would be a tough a mental challenge pushing for the last set of 7 but great to know you’re almost completed.

Sets of 7 I find tough but okay as you are halfway through the set before you are really suffering. It’s when I do the sets of 9 or 10 that I can find it really tough, you’re already suffering and not quite halfway. As always I treat these one interval at a time if I can, get it done well, recover, then worry about next one. My smart turbo app has a countdown beep at 4 seconds then 2 seconds, so I don’t need to look at screen. Shorter recovery between sets this week, which is another way of continuing the progressive overload.

Anyway intervals.icu has my average interval power up 3 watts over my previous best. Doesn’t sound like much, but when it’s across all the intervals it adds up.

I’ve got some low cadence big gear efforts today, then I’ll get some Z2 in after that to make it more of an outing.

 

[IrishAl]

Sets of 7 I find tough but okay as you are halfway through the set before you are really suffering. It’s when I do the sets of 9 or 10 that I can find it really tough, you’re already suffering and not quite halfway. As always I treat these one interval at a time if I can, get it done well, recover, then worry about next one. My smart turbo app has a countdown beep at 4 seconds then 2 seconds, so I don’t need to look at screen. Shorter recovery between sets this week, which is another way of continuing the progressive overload.

Anyway intervals.icu has my average interval power up 3 watts over my previous best. Doesn’t sound like much, but when it’s across all the intervals it adds up.

I’ve got some low cadence big gear efforts today, then I’ll get some Z2 in after that to make it more of an outing.

Yeah I find the first few repetitions ok as the legs have usually recovered from the previous set…fatigue kicking in but before you know it you’ve have the set done then you know there’s the light at the end of the tunnel so it’s a matter of digging in for those last few with the achievement of getting it done.

3w gain is good - guess we all get the ‘easy’ gains when we first start on our training journey but when you’ve been consistently at it then every watt gain counts and is proof it’s all working.

 

[IrishAl]

My workout today. Meant to be 3x15min Z4. I knew when I started (actually I knew last night if I’m honest) that this was going to be horrible. It should be ok - I’ve done it many times on the turbo- but todays early start, weary head, weary legs and unforecast drizzle meant I was on the back foot. I had a couple of “man the f### up” moments during reps 1 and 2 but I got them done. I was running into traffic and outer suburbs of the city as I approached rep 3 so I ditched that idea and did some VO2 30/30s between traffic lights and downhills. Not quite the workout that was planned but close enough and the legs and head feel good for getting it done. ✅

 

[UphillSlowly]

Looks like a testing workout.

I find the threshold/SS/over unders harder tbh. Think Kitts it's because I am not naturally suited to endurance. Did better sprinting at school when younger and when I did some virtual racing, my power curve was skewed towards sprinting. But most of the riding I do is endurance....

 

[Norry1]

Well the year's training seems to have paid off - I managed a Bronze in the TLI National Road Race Championships yesterday which was one of my target "A" Races. Pretty chuffed.

I have my final significant race of this season on Saturday which is the British Cycling National Masters Circuit Race Championships at Darley Moor.

This week is mainly about recovery but I have one session of intensity with 2 x 13 minute blocks of 30:30s aiming for 400W. Sounds horrible but I don't recall doing these before so I don't really have anything to gauge them by.

 

[Legs]

I've been Zwifting for over two years now but I've only just done Emily's Short Mix for the first time. Normally I think that an hour is a worthwhile amount of time to spend on the bike to get a workout in so I've rarely done any of the shorter workouts. Wow, this one was tough! I was spending the time at FTP recuperating and preparing for the 115% blocks - I had to kid myself that 310W was feeling easy
View attachment 679217

I revisited Emily's Short Mix this morning and my view hasn't changed; this is one of the toughest workouts out there. My FTP is down at 303W atm so the threshold blocks were at 'only' 305W this morning and the VO2max blocks were at 350W. Just clung on for that final 3 minutes...

 

[Norry1]

I revisited Emily's Short Mix this morning and my view hasn't changed; this is one of the toughest workouts out there. My FTP is down at 303W atm so the threshold blocks were at 'only' 305W this morning and the VO2max blocks were at 350W. Just clung on for that final 3 minutes...

Who is this Emily anyway - and why does she hate us?

 

[Legs]

Who is this Emily anyway - and why does she hate us?

https://www.zwift.com/uk/events/view/47291

 

[Ming the Merciless]

This is what 8 days of hilly touring does for form 😂

 

[Legs]

I attained ‘transitional’ form (form>20) last week on returning from 18 days’ holiday in Colorado and Wyoming. It’s the first time I’ve gone into the yellow zone since starting on Zwift in early ‘21. My fitness score dropped from 45 to 19. Haven’t raced since I got back, but I imagine that it’ll take a while to get the top end back…

 

[Legs]

This is what 8 days of hilly touring does for form 😂

View attachment 703687

Whereabouts have you been, Ming? Stayed on Mongo or ventured abroad? 🤣🤣

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Whereabouts have you been, Ming? Stayed on Mongo or ventured abroad? 🤣🤣

An 8 day tour of Wales, averaging 2000m of ascent per day and multiple chevrons each day.

 

[HLaB]

I'm needing to get back to some structure, I've been preferring the company of others and my last VO2max session was at the end of July although it was outside and I've not done an indoors session since the week before that (the 18th July).

I am getting some training benefit out of the chaingangs and the one TT I've done but it's negligible and the routes/ styles of the rides have been entirely different and very little out of other group rides Ive done in August. 955 in total

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Did a FTP test on Monday. I gained a whole watt, within margin of error of the power meter, but I’ll take it. Anyway I’m entering a maintenance period now, and will pick up training again in November. Been a good year, with some decent gains, going back 12 months. Hopefully maintenance will allow me to remain steady, whilst not losing too much fitness. Then I can build on it heading into next year.