This is how we do it!
I’m in the fortunate position of being too slow to think about racing and other than the events I have planned - currently only a 215km hilly event (Dragon Ride Fondo) in June 2024 I just want to get faster and in particular get. More power at lower heart rate to reduce the strain on my body.
It really does feel like time is screaming by so I want to use my time most wisely.
I wonder why you want this outcome, and not simply increased performance?
Quite simply because 4 hours at an If of 0.85 means I’m left full of adrenaline and cortisol and sleep terribly.
What does that have to do with your heartrate?
A lot. Like @Dknotty, I ride for pleasure, mostly LSD and have already maximised volume (duration x frequency). Of course, I can still progress by increasing intensity but then I’ll lose appetite for riding after a while.
So goal is to implement some kind of reverse periodisation to push FTP up during indoor season and when outdoor period arrives return to high volume with higher power but reduced heart rate that does not affect motivation over longer period.
So your goal is push up ftp not lower heartrate
Lower HR in other words just means increased cardiac output aka increased vo2 max in trained individuals
Yeah, for me is good enough if I can keep HR as is at same intensity but higher power.