How To Make a Cycling Training Plan Your Own

[@pyramid_chris]

The best self coached video I’ve seen. Amazing free information and so easy to understand. Thank you.

[@trocycling1204]

Thanks man! I really appreciate that, hope it helps you out. 👍

[@benm8662]

Your final thoughts are asolutely true. Setting a goal and planning the steps to achieve it yourself has given me a massive boost on motivation - far beyond following a standard training plan. Your series helps a lot to understand how and why you do certain things at certain times - thank you for the input!

[@trocycling1204]

Thanks and glad you agree with those final thoughts! Yes, it's crazy how setting your own goals and thinking through the steps gives you drive and motivation. For those who haven't tried, I think it can be a game changer... especially if you truly love the sport.

[@rrvolk]

This is great!

[@2K00L2BTRU3]

Very underrated channel

[@trocycling1204]

Thanks, appreciate it!

[@tyronsuvronski]

Very informative and amazing video, thank so much man.Keep it up 👏

[@trocycling1204]

@@tyronsuvronski 👍

[@jnatiw]

Excellent video. Especially enjoyed the spreadsheet. Thank you.

[@erikknudsen4034]

You're welcome, good luck with your training!

[@BBQSKI]

Outstanding video series!!!

[@trocycling1204]

Thanks Ty!!

[@marklandree2413]

Great info! I've been searching for this for a while now and very glad I found it, so THANKS. One question: Is it unusual to do a 5x5 VO2 workout at max repeatable power but not achieve greater than 90% heart rate? My legs are absolutely cooked, but I only achieve 85% max heart rate. Is this just a mental thing or do I need to hit the gym? Any thoughts would be appreciated. 54 years old, FTP near 275W, 5 min power about 340W.

[@trocycling1204]

Glad you found this video! This is hard to say without knowing more, but 5x5 is a really hard workout and 85% hr isn't too shabby. The first questions I'd ask are...1) is you max heart rate truely accurate? Sometimes we get false reading, or anomoly reading that are not normal. After that, the next question is... are you truely fresh? If you are nice and fresh, you should be able to get it up. One of the clear signs of over-doing it going into a VO2 workout is starting with slightly tired legs. The last question is... what power are you hitting? 306 or higher? If all of those things check out, it might just be you and your heart. I wouldn't get to bothered by it, hearts and heart beats don't always follow the standard rules, so remember that!! You're still improving stroke volume at 85%max because your heart is working hard. Good luck!

[@s-ultracycling]

Great info

[@zaahierstanley955]

Amazing time and effort in this work in developing these spreadsheets. Any thoughts on : Having 2 interval days - 1 threshold and 1 vo2max or 1 threshold and 1 anaerobic if one only did 1 arobic block? How would one deal with the ramp rate in terms of a combination?

[@trocycling1204]

Thanks man! Appreciate that. Thoughts on the two options for hard interval days: Those would work, but it just depends on where you are and what you're trying to do. Think in terms of the whole season, and when in the season it makes sense to do that type of work. Are these right before a race or event? Then yes, definately do them. But if you are far away from your events, it might make more sense to try something different... save those workouts for when in your season that it makes sense to do them. For ramp rates with those: Again, it kind of depends on what your current CTL is and what you've been doing thus far. Since we're in December, I'm assuming you haven't done a whole lot. Therefore, you could think of it in terms of building CTL, so go for ramp rates on the lighter side of what I recommend in the ATP (cell K3). Maybe a 3-4, but again I don't know your exact situation. Definately experiment, record how you feel and see what works for you though!

[@benedictgramaje7991]

Hi Erik, I really love your videos. I've learned something new. But where can I download the cheat sheet. thanks!

[@trocycling1204]

Awesome, glad you like my videos! You can download the cheat sheet here, I'll send it to your email. atp.trocycling.com

[@christiantaylor7150]

This video is great! Thank you! I also downloaded the spreadsheet, which is very helpful too! Quick question: I am just now starting Aerobic 1 but my CTL is 86 from all the riding I did in the summer. I don't want to maintain that all winter. What is a good CTL for a Masters crit racer and is it ok to train in such a way that the CTL decreases to a point and then comes back up?

[@trocycling1204]

Awesome, glad you liked the video! Good questions on the CTL dropping. A CTL of 86 is solid, and you’d definitely benefit from letting it drop a bit in the off-season. If you’ve been hovering right around there all summer (I’m assuming), I’d let it drop to the 50-60 range over the course of 1-2 month. You could do that by maintaining a reasonable amount of zone 2 and then not burying yourself on hard days (hard days of 1-2 times/wk without turning it into a sufferfest… think maintenace or limiting the fitness damage). You could also dedicate some time to the gym for a few month… CTL will naturally fall off that way too as you shift time from riding to the gym. If you let it drop like that, you’ll come back stronger when you build it back up, pretty much a guarantee. As for a good CTL for a masters crit racer… that all depends on the individual. I know a 45 y/o masters crit racer who do best when he’s peaking in the low 70’s and a 62 y/o masters roadie who does best when he maintains the low 80’s! As a general rule, shoot for the highest CTL that works for your lifestyle and also allows you to feel fresh and snappy on race day (and hard interval days). You have to experiment with it a bit… get it up into the 90’s for a few blocks and figure how you feel… does it work for your lifestyle and are you able to recover consistently? If not, go down by 10. It’s all a constant experiment and learning what works best for you, but that’s part of the fun of it all!

[@christiantaylor7150]

@@trocycling1204 Thanks for the reply! I was actually hovering over 100 all summer with a high of 117 near the end of July. I started bringing it down at the start of September. I was 104 at the start of September.

[@trocycling1204]

@@christiantaylor7150 - super strong! There's not a lot of masters cyclists that can maintain that high of a load... and still be able to walk, lol. Enjoy the rest over this fall, hopefully you'll come back even stronger next year!