I’m 67 and just started with TrainerRoad a short while ago. I’m just finishing Masters LV Base and was looking at what I should be doing next. The obvious choice was base 3, but then I wondered about a custom plan with two gravel events entered to work towards - not races but I’d like to improve ftp and fitness overall and finish as strongly as I can. Alternatively, I’d do base 3 and then some build or maybe more base as the event are in March and May. So I asked Chat GPT and gave it some health info as well as asking whether mid volume would be an idea - main one being I was diagnosed with mild bronchiectasis last year - it’s like a sort of very mild asthma and the worst effect is that it takes a long time to recover from bad colds, and indeed my first base block was interrupted for 10 days with a bit of a flare. Breathing etc on the bike doesn’t seem bad and Garmin gives me a VO2 max of 40 which seems sort of alright.
Chat GPT suggested definitely stick to low volume and add in more zone 2 as is comfortable. I’m also doing Pilates once a week and another gym session for strength. But it basically said to stop or greatly reduce any VO2 workouts and replace them with sweet spot saying that would be better for 4-5hour gravel rides and the SS would give 80-90% of the same benefits anyway. It would also reduce likelihood of a flare up due to irritation or poor recovery saying it was more important to complete a block rather than dealing with something which may reduce immunity leading to more time off. I did tell it I’d completed all VO2 workouts so far, although I did find them the toughest to complete. It also said VO2 max was not a limiter for the gravel events I was looking at and it offered limited returns for the increased health and recovery cost.
I’m asking here basically as I just checked out the base 3 and there’s 3 key VO2 max workouts as opposed to only one in base 2. I’m pretty new to this sort of structured training and I’m ok with the idea that pretty much anything I do regularly will help ftp and fitness, so I’m guessing it’s not going to make much difference to me if I swap out one or two of those VO2 for SS?
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I’d recommend using plan builder instead of dropping in the old plans. Pick the goal (a type of race or general fitness), if general fitness it asks your goal (I.e. raise ftp, build endurance etc) and set the time (1-3 months our longer). If you pick a masters plan, it won’t have more than 2 intense workouts per week. Then let the new Ai approach do its thing. If you answer the surveys honestly, it will make sure you don’t over train or wear yourself down. Good luck!
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Hey @Robert9 
I would also recommend letting TrainerRoad build you a custom Masters plan that is Event based with the two gravel events to work towards. You can set the latter one to be your A Event and the other your B Event.
How to Add A, B, and C Events to Your Calendar
I’d follow the recommended adaptations as well as the Fatigue Detection warnings, but really listen to your body for extra rest if needed. It’s better to rest, recover and keep training, than keep training and having to take off many days at a time.
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Thanks for the replies. I’ve just finished the second base block this evening and just waiting now for an ftp update which I’ll get tomorrow. All workouts completed ok and 2 strength sessions each week, and a couple of free outdoor rides thrown in, easy and short as it’s cold here😂. I think I’ll stick with starting the third base block, and then after that is completed in 4 weeks I’ll start a custom plan with events A and B as you suggest. I’ve had a fair spread of yellow days, and a couple of red and my Garmin is telling me I’ve had a longer green productive streak than I’ve had in ages, so fatigue and effort seem to be on a good balance.
Swapping one or even all of those VO2 sessions for sweet spot or tempo is reasonable in your situation. At 67, with bronchiectasis and gravel goals, consistency and recovery matter more than squeezing out marginal VO2 gains. Sweet spot and zone 2 will still move your FTP and endurance, and they are far more repeatable if flare ups are a risk. Base 3 is not mandatory, finishing blocks healthy and training week to week will give you better results than forcing VO2 and losing time to recovery.
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Thanks, so what do you think would fit well if u didn’t do Base 3? Would repeating Base 1 and 2 again be a better option or just start off on a custom plan?
I’m just getting to grips with how the types of workouts change in the different blocks, there’s a lot to take in. B1 and B2 look like would keep the VO2 max down. When I played around with plan builder it was giving me 4 workouts a week instead of 3 from the fixed Masters plans. If I go to the easiest plan it only gives 2 workouts.