Hey @SarahLaverty thanks for the analysis. Much appreciated.
You’ll notice pretty much every week I drop the 1.5hr sweet spot ride for 2-4 hours of pretty consistent zone two. My understanding was that the two were fairly equivalent and I’ve never truly bought into the TR mantra that you can train for 5+ hour events on max. 1.5hr rides.
If not the case that’s quite a big wake up. What I could do is take the 1.5hour sweet spot rides outdoors and tack an hour of z2 before and after.
That way I’m hitting every structured workout but also adding in the extra volume I think I need.
I think you’re on the right track. With low volume you need to be hyper consistent and doing as much intensity as you can recover from. Keeping the SS and adding z2 to the beginning or end is a good strategy.
Regarding long events and the TR plans. From Nov '23 to April '24 I followed a mid volume masters plan, all indoors with rides maxing out at 2 hours. I did one 6 hour ride outdoors in mid april, then stuck to the TR workouts until I did a 100k/7500 ft marathon MTB race in June. I finished in 5.5 hrs, with my NP in the lower end of my SS power. Felt great the whole way and passed many many people during the second half of the race. I had no delusions of winning or getting even close (pro winner was 4hrs) but i was above mid pack out of 300 something people. The plans work.
I’d switch it to a 2+ hr, 3 if it allows it, outdoor workout, usually they give you the endurance front and back that would encourage steady state, and extend as needed.
I agree with @gally24! I think this is a great idea, especailly if you enjoy the longer rides, and are comfortably managing that volume (which it looks like you are).
It wouldn’t be accurate to consider them equivalent per se, but they do both contribute to the development of your aerobic energy system. development. These specific workouts make up a small part of a larger picture. The sweet spot workout you are prescribed fits perfectly within the jigsaw of the training plan desinged for you. Whereas adding on zone 2 work here and there will contribute to some of the intended adaptations, but it doesn’t fit perfectly into the bigger pciture we are creating with your training plan.
Prioritize the Workouts scheduled in your training plan for the best results. Then feel free to add on some Zone 2 if you enjoy it and feel like you benefit from it .
Why not update your plan to a Master’s plan with 2 interval sessions a week. That way you would not even have to replace one. You can now set your weekly schedule to include 2+ hour outdoor rides as well.
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