Help with back to back recovery weeks and ramp testing

Training
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Hi!

I hope I’m not overlapping too much with my post. Please remove if I am.

35, male, 69kg, 285ftp, 4.13 w/kg

So I’m in the middle of my final recovery week at the end of sustained power build MV. I’ve had steady gains all fall and into the winter. At the midway point ramp test for the build (a few weeks ago) I saw another 6 watt bump (yay!). This made for some very challenging last few weeks of build. I could tell fatigue was high and by the last couple of workouts I was barely hanging on and was turning the intensity down a few % on the last intervals. From every other post I’ve read, the end of sustained power build is a real killer, so I was thrilled to finish as strongly as I did despite the adjustments.

So as the recovery week has progressed, I’m feeling better, but I’m really leaning towards adding a second recovery week back to back, just to allow my body some more rest as I really havent had a “offseason” in 14 months of TR. Like most everyone else, I have no goal events, so this recovery week wasn’t going to mess up any plans.

This leads to three questions I have.

  1. After the first recovery week, we would typically head into the next phase (specialty in my case) starting off with the Tuesday ramp test. Assuming I’m feeling up to it, should I ramp test on Tuesday and then just continue the week with the recovery rides? Part of me is curious as to whether I saw any gains after the second phase of build.

  2. After my second recovery week should I ramp test again before heading into my next phase? Or just take the previous ramp test results and run with it?

  3. Lastly, since I have no events would I be better served to head back into base with my new high FTP and build it up from there? Or would you still do specialty? I’ve heard some people say specialty is only really needed for peaking leading into an event, but then others say there’s still some value to be gained.

Thanks in advance!

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I’d do the ramp test early next week, do another week of recovery/endurance rides and then back into base with the higher FTP. Not sure I’d want to have a peak in February, even just for kicks. Unless you live in a super mild climate where you could actually go enjoy it and get some KOMs or something.

I think doing the ramp test after 2 weeks of recovery might give you some foggy/dead legs…and you’d potentially underperform. I know I would. Better to do it with a little fatigue, but better form, imho.

1 Like
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Thanks!

That’s kind of what I was thinking too. You make a good point about dead legs.