I started with 4 weeks of Base - Sprint Triathlon - Mid
Then I did 6 weeks of Base - Olympic Triathlon - Mid
Took 2 weeks off to give my body rest as it was the first time ever I followed a training plan
Started Base - Half Triathlon - Mid, but after week 4 I got the news that the local race I wanted to train for was canceled, so I switched the other 4 weeks of the block to Base - Olympic Triathlon - Mid again.
Took a week off during Christmas and New Year
Started 2020 with Plan Builder which gave me again 5 weeks of Base - Olympic Triathlon - Mid
So at the moment, Iām in my 3rd week of Build- Olympic Triathlon - Mid for the first time and added a weekly strength training session in the gym too.
I do try to experiment a lot (switch days, switch gym sessions, replace workouts) as my real goal is in 5-7 years and not my first year of training. Not sure if Iām doing the right thing but it sure feels as if it is working.
I am doing the mid-volume, full distance triathlon plan. I have completed the 12-week base and 8-week build phases and am now starting the specialize phase. I completed an FTP test at the start of each of the three phases. For each of the three workouts, I used the ramp test. Iāve lost about four pounds over the course of the 20-weeks of training. Below are my numbers. Iām very pleased with my progress.
Start of base training: 224W (3.5 W/ kg)
Start of build phase: 242W (3.8 W/ kg)
Start of specialize phase: 257W (4.1 W/ kg)
My Ironman is in eight weeks. There is no additional FTP test in the training plan, so I guess I will use todayās number for the IM. Iām not sure how accurate it will be given that I have several more weeks of training and Iām currently fatigued from the build phase. How much higher could it be with more training and a proper taper? Who knows.
Now through 4 weeks of a modified Trad Base 1 (1-2 days cycling, 1 day running, 1-2 days hiking, 1 body-weight strength session) in prep for trekking in Peru in June (assuming not disrupted by COVID-19). FTP tested today and basically constant (194 ā 195; 2.83 W/kg). Seems reasonable for a month of almost exclusively endurance work only partially on the bike and at a total TSS/wk of around 350. Happy with the stability, as it shows that the test is probably getting close to my actual FTP. Have definitely noticed a big improvement in my hiking strength, so generally OK if my biking just stays stable for the moment.
Now on to 4 weeks of a modified Trad Base 2. Same hiking, running, hiking, strength split, but with a bit more Tempo work thrown in on top of the endurance.
Having never done structured training before, I started 2020 with TrainerRoad. I spent the past fall racing cyclocross mostly just for fun but also to keep some of my fitness over to the next year. My peak FTP in 2019 was roughly 250 for reference. My race weight for last year was about 71kg.
I skipped the Base phase and went straight into the Build Phase as my first Collegiate races start in mid March and felt that I retained a decent amount of base from the fall. I typically ride about 8 hours a week depending on my work schedule and midterms.
Mid Volume General Build Block 1 - Jan 7th - 247 W, 3.48 W/kg (Ramp Test) 71kg
Mid Volume General Build Block 2 - Feb 4th - 276 W, 3.94 W/kg (Ramp Test) 70kg
End of Mid Volume General Build - Mar 4th - 290 W, 4.17 W/kg (20 Minute Power Test outside) 69.5kg
Iāve been very pleased with the improvement so far. Iām well on track to meet my cycling goals for 2020 and Iām excited to see how my hard work will pay off. Iāve always been a sprinter with a Max 5 sec of 1452 W and 21.04 W/kg so I know that now with a decent FTP Iāll be competitive in Cat 4/ Menās C and hopefully get into Cat 3/Menās B by the start of the summer.
20/10/2018 - 191
19/11/2018 - 205 (a bit undervalued I think - I was sick)
05/01/2019 - 246
10/03/2019 - 267 (I feel like I could have done a bit more)
20/04/2019 - 278 (again, underperfomed a bit I think - rather a breathing / mental failure, muscles were completely OK)
21/07/2019 - 287
01/03/2020 - 300
I definitely like my progress - Iām pretty sure I could have squeeze some more watts on the last test.
Appreciate the Ramp test is a snapshot of your FTP at that moment on one particular day. Iāve seen mine fluctuate but 1 or 2 watts. I generally just keep my FTP the same if it drops by 1 or 2 watts and then use the new value if it ever increases.
However, after a proper end of plan recovery week it is always lower. Today it was 3% lower about 7 watts. I was just thinking this seems so marginal given I think I mentally checked out perhaps 30 seconds too early (realistically I could have dropped my cadance to like 60rpm and gritted for another 30 seconds) which would have kept my FTP the same.
Iām going to keep my FTP at the lower value at least for this week and then increase it to my previous value at the start of next week. Or should I just keep it at the previous value and say today was a ābad day at the officeā? Workouts this week my feel a little tougher but Iāll be back into it next week?
Just wondering what the general thoughts are on what the FTP swing from day to day? +/- 2% feels about right without seeing any serious detriment in completion of workouts etc
Coming up to two years of training indoors, my H1 is still going strong. Slowly getting back after a rough couple of months. Do find my FTP plateaus around the 330 mark and could do with losing a couple of kilos, but have noticed a vast improvement in my engine, I can keep going for much longer. After last nights Ramp, I left a little in the tank so I could complete the event I was partaking in. Pushing at this level after the ramp I donāt believe would have been possible last year.
ā¢1 Oct 2019 - 237w
ā¢12 Nov 2019. End of SSB1 - 251w
ā¢24 Dec 2019. End of SSB2 - 251w
ā¢Done some z2 stuff over the festive period.
ā¢4 Feb 2020. Beginning of Plan builder - 256w
ā¢9 Mar 2020. First ramp test during plan builder (5 weeks into plan builder) - 286w
Iām in the same boat. Peaked around 275 FTP / 4.3 W/kg last year around August. Then I was off the bike for the rest of the year (running focused for a race in October, then nothing through the holidays).
I did a ramp test early Jan and came back 209 FTP / 3.2 W/kg. Back to 230 FTP / 3.5 W/kg, but boy is it humbling clawing my way back.