Hi all,
I’m new to TR and also somewhat new to cycling. In order to ask the question right and to make you understand, I have to explain my situation:
I’ve been going through a weight loss journey (from 243lbs to now 144lbs) by mostly changing my diet and by exercising/running. I put in quite some running miles in the last 2.5 years and did compete in half marathons etc. My weekly running mileage was right around 40 miles.
Last January, I injured my heel and couldn’t run, which is when I started to cycle. I started on a spinning bike, really enjoyed it and invested in a road bike (TCR II), a powermeter and training wheels (zonda). I really enjoyed cycling and rode 4 days a week, very unstructured, sometimes with a neighbor, etc.
My wife ended sign me up for an event: a 12 hour “race” - whoever can ride the most miles in 12 hours. So I started training.
I started with a pretty decent aerobic fitness, and all the spinning and cycling I did until then was helping me. I was using a training plan form “today’s plan” and tried to ramp up my training without burning out but still making the most gains possible. The last 6 weeks before the race I averaged 13 hours a week with a TSS of about 800 (I now understand that this might have been a bit too much). During my training I did all kind of intervals (tempo, threshold, sprints, VO2max, etc.) but also long endurance rides (up to 6 hours/110 miles). Anyhow, last weekend I had my race and started at 7PM and rode through 4:15 AM with a total mileage of 160. I was quite proud considering I’m new to the sport.
My current CTL is at around 100 and I was now planning on a recovery week followed by new plan, maybe some more base building etc.
I was thinking of doing some more road races/rides next year but want to use the fall and winter to properly prepare. I was now looking at the plans and I was wondering if I should start with medium volume or if I should do high volume due to my (for me) very high volume in the recent weeks?
So far, I rode a total of about 3,500 miles this year but really started to pick up cycling in March, so it’s like 3,500 miles in 6 months.
My outdoor FTP is 232 Watts at a weight of 144 lbs - in case that would be needed to give advice.
Oh, I’m 38 years old, btw.
Thanks
winoria
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Impressive.
I went from 230 to 150… I know it takes time and dedication! So kudos to you!
What type of races are you looking to do?
Are you planning to take on running again?
base on the image you posted, Maybe you should focus on ramping up to gain more power.
If you plan to do time based races, you want to make sure you can hold high power for long time, similar to Triathlon riders.
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Well, I thought of doing the Triple Bypass (120 miles Colorado) next year and/or maybe the Ride Across Wisconsin (225 miles). I would also be interested in racing but feel I’m too old and started too late.
You already run…
If you can swim, its never too late to join the triathlon crew!
Ha, I didn’t run in a while - other then some recovery/easy jogs with my wife…I have small hands, not good for swimming I’m afraid 
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That is awesome…congrats!!
Nah…never too old or too late to toe the line for the first time. Plenty of people didn’t start until they were in the Masters category. Don’t let that stop you!!
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My suggestion would be to start with mid volume and nail it before moving to high volume. The reason being that the best plan is the one you can follow the best. Mid volume allows you the ability if you’re feeling good or have extra time to do a plus version of the workout and is “easier” to recover from if you start to dig yourself a hole.
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This is not how swimming works. 
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I was afraid somebody would say that…
Mid volume allows you the ability if you’re feeling good or have extra time to do a plus version of the workout
does that mean that the workouts are setup in a way that I could instead of XYZ I could do XYZ+1 or +2 to ramp up intensity?
Sure…
But… as a person new to riding, I would take the process with caution.
The plans are made to maximize efficiency while minimizing injuries.
What some people do (me included) is add 15 minutes at 70% ftp at the end of the ride to add more volume.
do you guys use other platforms like Training Peaks to track and plan your year and development?
Yep. I would probably only do this on workouts before rest days so it doesn’t risk getting in the way of other workouts with residual fatigue
I do pay for TP and strava because:
In any case. TR is working on adding runs and swimming. Once that happens then i can drop TP.
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dude congrats on all the success so far! So awesome. FWIW some of the hardest master’s racing is 40+ or 45+, so toe the line as much as you can between now and then and who knows what could happen.
Brendan
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