I wanted to share a great power-based workout I did yesterday (you can click the picture to enlarge it). I love this workout because it targets three specific areas that are key to being a good all-around cyclist. Those are functional threshold, sweet spot, and aerobic threshold.
Most of us these days know what functional threshold, also known as FTP, is (or at least, have heard the term used). Technically its the hardest pace/power you can maintain for 1 hour. Keeping your FTP as high as possible helps you climb better, stay in breaks longer, and feel more rested after a bike split. No matter what kind of rider you are a good threshold power is your friend.
The third term (we’ll talk about sweet spot in a second) is your aerobic threshold. This threshold is much lower than FTP at around 75% of your FTP or high zone 2/low zone 3 if you train with heart rate. This is your “all day” pace. Its the pace you hope to ride on a century or during a long-course triathlon bike leg. Much of your training time in the winter and early season is spent here to build your base fitness. However, during the season this is often forgotten and our base slides due to our focus on group rides or racing.
The last effort is the “sweet spot”. This is a newer term that refers to the area between aerobic threshold (AeT) and functional threshold (FTP). Its generally around 90% of FTP or high zone 3 low zone 4 if you use heart rate. You might also refer to it as a “hard tempo”. Its the pace of a fast group ride when you’re just a little over your head (and we all know what that feels like!). The sweet spot is where you get the most bang for your buck. Its not nearly as hard as a 100% effort and therefore doesn’t require as much recovery. However, its harder than “just riding around” and so has a definite effect on your overall fitness.
The workout pictured above targets all three of these areas. The dashed line is my current FTP. The first 3 intervals target your FTP, which I rode for 10 minutes at about 100-105% of my current FTP with 5 minute rests. The second interval was in the “sweet spot” for 20 minutes. Every couple minutes I’d attack for 10 seconds to keep the pressure on. The last interval was 30 minutes at aerobic threshold. In this portion I just rode steadily at around 75% of my FTP trying to keep a good steady cadence. I also spent much of this time in the drops as a way to build strength and efficiency in that position.
This was an all around great workout for this time of year. Many times we get focused on doing shorter intervals or group rides and forget to work on our base fitness. Adding a workout like this into your regimen every couple weeks is a great way to get a mid-summer boost in your overall fitness.
-coach david c.
0 Comments.