3 races evenly spread - spring/summer/fall, but no time for full re-build every time

Hi there O’great forum! Been a keen reader of the treads here for a month+ now and learned a lot. Going in to my first year of structured training with TR and seek som advice from all you seasoned riders.

I would be happy for your advice. Please tear my plan apparat, so I can learn.

I’m going into 2019 with 3 races in mind:

  1. XCM race - 65km primary on single track - May 25.
  2. L’etappe du Tour - 130km road with lots of climbing - June 21.
  3. XCM race - 112km mix og singletrack and fire road/gravel - August 31.

All three resulting in 5h+ days in the saddle. If I have to prioritize dem, it would be A race, B race, A race.

Being a parent of three small ones, I only have time for the low volume plans. But I can use my commute to get some endurance/recovery rides in (~35 min one way) during the week. So the plan I have made is as follows:

Before first race:

SSB II & II followed by General Build and XC Marathon Specialty. This brings me perfectly to my first event, with the Specialty Phase ending the week I race.

I have switched the workouts around so my longest workout is on the Tuesdays. Works best with the family.

This is my first year of structured training like this and use of TR, but I have owned a powermeter for a year already. The Low Volume plans doesn’t give me that mutch TSS, but I can see from my commuting during the fall that I can handle around 350 TSS weekly. I therefore play with the idea of doing +1 workouts to bump up the TSS 30ish on a weekly basis.

Question: Is this +1 plan a smart move? Or just add more TSS with recovery commuting (only possible from late March)? Or make the weekend ride longer, adding extra endurance when possible (won’t be often).

After first race, the messy part:

  • Between first and second race there are 8 weeks.
  • Between second and third race there are 6 weeks.

This is the part of the plan I’m unsure of, but here is my suggestion:

After first race:

1 week recovery
5 weeks rebuild with start of Sustained Power Build
2 last weeks of the Climbing Road Race Specialty as a taper.

Question: Do I need a full week after first A race to recover? I estimate that the race will give me 300 TSS (data from last time). Do I reallyneed two weeks of tapering before second race?

Question: Smarter to do the later part of the build plan to get the TSS since I’m on low volume anyway?

After second race:

1 week recovery (of the bike and on holiday with family, no bike available)
6 last weeks of the XC Marathon Specialty + a ramp test at the start

The general idea here is that I re-build and re-specialize for my last A race, but throw in a taper to race L’etappe in the middle.

I’m not sure if this is the best way to re-build after my first race to get a good season overall. Alternatives and criticism are welcome!

You have a lot going on with your questions. Your lead up to your first A race looks good. Then you have your B race. I would do General Build and do a slight taper, maybe just reduce the volume (not intensity) of the couple workouts preceding your B Race. Then I’d do the last 6 weeks of the XCM Specialty plan leading to your second A race. You’re not going to peak for your B race (as it’s not as important) but you should have plenty of fitness to do well.

You don’t need a week rest after your races. However, pay attention to how you feel and adjust the workouts accordingly the week after the race. You may need a day or two rest then an easy spin. After that you should be able to get back after it.

Your +1 plan idea is fine if you can handle it. You could also just add some easy TSS filler at the end of your normal workouts. Commuting is also ok if it is recovery/endurance and doesn’t come at the expense of your performance on your interval days.

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Many good thoughts, thanks! Always good to have a second pair of eyes :grinning:

This sounds like a good idea, I’ll adjust my plan accordingly.

I suspected this, I’ll see how I fell and pay attention to the fatigue.

When it comes to the +1 part, time will tell if this works for me or not. I’ll give it a go and see. :sunglasses:

@MI-XC gave you some great advice. We’d also recommend doing a re-build and then moving to the specialty phase before your third race.

To echo what was already said on this topic, doing +1 workouts is a great way to add TSS if you can manage the longer workouts or increased training stress. You’ll also need to pay more attention to recovery if you go this route. If you decide to add some commuting or light riding, that’s basically adding lower-end TSS like what the workouts Pettit and Taku do. You’re welcome to play this by ear and see what combination of both works best for you. One last suggestion is to examine the Mid Volume level and see what workouts you could remove or reduce to make that plan fit into your life schedule. Sometimes it’s easier to trim the plan down than it is to add extra work to an existing format.

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Thanks for good advice @larry, I’ll take this into consideration too :+1:t2:

Also found @Bryce comment interesting:

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@Bryce knows his stuff. :wink:

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Your plan looks sound to me. That’s pretty much what I would be doing.