I’m currently following a low-volume style setup with:
Mon: 1h quality session
Wed: 1h15 quality session
Fri: 0:45h shorter/moderate but still productive session
Sat: Adaptive outdoor endurance ride (~2.5h Z2)
That puts me around 5.5–6 hours/week on the bike, plus some strength training (twice a week, Tue and Thu, 1h each).
With AI FTP and Adaptive Training working pretty well now for me, I’m wondering what the smartest way is to gradually increase volume over time without compromising recovery or workout quality.
For those who successfully moved from ~6h/week toward higher volume:
Did you extend endurance rides first?
Add extra easy rides?
Increase frequency before duration?
How quickly did you progress weekly hours?
Did Adaptive Training keep up well with the added volume?
I’m 40, mostly focused on long-term progression, durability, and consistency rather than peaking quickly.
I have this question too. It’s given me a long ride of 2 hours in prep for a (hopefully) 11 hour unbound. How do we tell the ai we are not "time crunched " ( oh how I hate that term)
I don’t think there is anything one set answer for this. The way I think about it is where could I add time that fits my schedule while still being productive and that still allows me to recover.
Having a complete day off is always a good idea IMO. So being that the OP is 4 days on the bike and 2 strength days you have some options. I’d personally add time to my long days or tack on an extra 15 minutes to my other sessions in a progressive manner over time. That helps increase the load in a way that can be beneficial. I think it’s up to you to figure out where to add extra time but I’d extend my long ride personally as that would help for my personal goals.
If I’m letting adaptive training guide the way I’d set my endurance rides to dynamic and follow along and see how it adapts.
I’m thinking about starting to add 15 minutes to each workout as a sort of experiment, and seeing whether the AI adapts and learns from that over time.
Right now I’m following the plan exactly as prescribed by the “Customized Schedule Recommendation” in Plan Builder — same number of workouts, same intensity, and same duration.
My idea is to edit the workout just before starting it and increase the allotted time. For example, changing a 1-hour workout to 1h15m and then letting the AI automatically adjust the workout structure for me.
That would be an interesting way to add the time. I on the other would probably just ride the extra 15 on the tail end or extend the warmup. I don’t think there is a right or wrong way to do it, however your method may make better use of the AI function.
I think there are a few ways to do it. I’ve increased from my winter training of 3 TR sessions per week to currently 10 hrs per week, mostly outside but i prefer to do my intervals on Trainer road. I use AI adaptive to pick my TR sessions but not train now as I know roughly what type of session I want to do and how long for but I let IA choose within those parameters.
I think I’d start by adding a zone 2 or easy session, the day after your long ride. You can increase your longer outdoor ride gradually, I do that only by about 15-30 mins per month, depending on starting point. You could add 15 mins to any of your indoor rides up to all of them. AI will increase the degree of difficulty as you progress. It will also sometimes give you a longer ride if it thinks you’ve exhausted the shorter option. Personally, I have a limit of 90 mins per session on the indoor trainer, I just dont enjoy anything longer.
It might be helpful to decide where you would like your training to progress to in terms of hours or TSS and then make a plan to get there over a period of time. I turned the red/green days off in the end, as they drove me mad and managed my own energy levels but they were helpful at first to remind me not to over do it and get fatigued. I’ve just started using HRV with an app and comparing that with how I feel and adjust accordingly.
It is a little labour intensive as I am planning a month at a time but I don’t really like the plans. I am sure someone will be along soon to suggest the smarter more AI way. I’m 62 btw so progression had to be managed quite closely.
I’ve started extending my tues/wed cooldowns by 15 minutes as time allows. I do bump that up to zone 2ish for a bit of it.
I add a zone 2 ride Wednesday of 30-60 minutes. Then weekends I just add some extra time. Usually since I ride with guys faster than me on Saturday I blow up and TR gives me a red day on Sunday
Easiest way is to add Zone 2 on Tuesday / Thursday and gradually increase the long endurance ride if time is available. It’s all dependent on time availability of course.
One thing to consider when adding a new stimulus (volume) is to eat well and be sure to make sure you are sleeping enough. Also while you are transitioning to a higher volume you may want to cut the third intensity day and just do a zone 2 or recovery ride as needed.
You will be tired. Workouts may need to be adjusted down initially but when your body adjusts (3-6 weeks for most people) you’ll be stronger than ever.
