Will preface post with training is going well, started official training in early January with my own sweetspot buildup(~ftp300) in Nov-Dec on my own. FTP from 310->336w PR now, highest last season(also PR) was 320w in June2025. Although with the mysterious ‘new AI’ vs ‘old AI’… no idea how that compares (wish they would review back in time with new ‘auto detected FTP’ over the last few years of training!) so you could actually compare fitness(!) [besides comparing pwer curve of sub-maximal efforts or whatever training fed you to do)
I have no heard Jonathan mention multiple times this spring about long sweetspot workouts in his lead up to Leadville. I am targeting a similar and even longer gravel event (~14hr) but in week 15 of 31 (early/mid of Build) in a Gravel Plan (2wks before Leadville). Haven’t gotten a sweetspot workout in months…besides one manually in a recovery week right, before a 10day vacation (that was without bike).
I know I am not doing the biking volume he is with my limited masters plan with plenty of running. So maybe that is why? Just need to target intensity with just three scheduled rides for a ‘time crunched plan’? vo2 and threshold workouts… for 2 months now (Feb 17th was my first vo2max workout).
Another concern, is really nothing has increased duration - have been only doing 6-9min OverUnders (unless I swap manually) and has been only doing 30sec to 2min vo2… guessing maybe due to FTP increases of 5-15w each update, puts me back to low workout levels to ease back in… but then never grows the duration/WL#. Maybe its just a case of i’m not small at 6’ 175#, it is seeing FTP gains still… so lets keep pushing intensity, room to grow… high FTP goal, don’t worry about TimeToExhaustion(TTE).
Trade offs of pacing race day at 66% of FTP (if power at FTP is focused, lower TTE) or best case 70% FTP (if TTE goes is trained, lower FTP)
I really wish that each plan had a page dedicated to a description of the makeup and progression of each phase. Best I have found of each is a comparison article which maybe has a sentence or two of each (if i recall properly). It is a “we don’t know what, its AI based on the riders past …”, cuz mine showed ‘traditional vo2’ finally in future… but then it got into training window, it was still just 1min reps?! lol
Just don’t want this to be like I have seen with Garmin Marathon plans where I see people post 1-1.5months from race in Forum… “is it normal to only have a 10mile long run?! shouldn’t the plan be increasing…” LOL eek I do see in the specialty plan some sweetspot… for a bit of reverse base periodization for long steady event? Yet Jonathan is doing multiple sweetspot per week early&Build…?
EDIT: Now I look at my calendar and things are VERY different… NO Predicted effort level on workouts!!! Recovery weeks are now recovery weeks lowzn2 (instead of endurance weeks) IF of <.6 , instead of .7-.80
Also today is now the Start of a Phase? Don’t remember it being there just earlier when posting (did someone reset/adjust my account?) plus pinned tuesday workout is gone. :-/ weird