1 + 5 + 2 + 1 = 9. Looks like 9 days from what Mathew described.
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I didnāt make any adjustment. Based on what Iāve heard him say, I think this would just change the length of the long ride. I only do crits, and he has mentioned varying the length of the long workout depending on the type of event. If I were doing road races, Iād probably try to do a 5-6h long ride but keep everything else the same. 5-6h could probably still benefit me, but there could be diminishing returns. Frank Overton had a recent podcast calling for super long weekend rides for CX/crits. Right now Iām ok with the plan as Iāve laid it out, and Iāll see how it goes.
I did a FTP test today in prep for the start of the plan. I knew I was about 260 and it came in at 264. I could have bet good money that I was between 258 and 265 and so it turned out.
I used the Kolie Moore protocol which went well.
I will do the ramp test on Monday but I will not be adjusting my numbers based on the result. It doesnāt really suit me as I tend to quit a bit too easily and I dont do much at the top end as far as training goes.
264 is my highest ever, which puts me at 3.3 w/kg. Quite happy with that aged 64.
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Good luck and interested to see how the first POL block goes.
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You will, you will 
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There is method in the madness of doing 60-65%, like petit. Just because you havenāt done it, donāt like it etc, is no reason to work around it. As an example:
When Iām out doing an endurance zone type ride, I find it extremely difficult to keep my energy level low, it is more difficult than going for it. When the road rises, or another rider overtakes, and you have to force yourself not push harder, not to chase and draft, instead, get into an easier gear and spin.
It is a pacing discipline!
How will you know if Polarised works if you donāt stick to the exercise intensities.
Extending the hours is altogether different, provided you stick to the intensity.
I donāt intend to do the longer rides, so will replace then with either 2 shorter rides, or modifications of the planned to retain the plan. Depending on the weather Iāll do most of the Endurance rides outside, have already noticed that some, but confusingly not all, are longer outside than indoors?
Iām delighted that the TR team intend to use the data from these experimental plans. Although concerned that the outside rides with Wahoo, may not give them the feedback they hope for?
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The first threshold workout today. Capitan. 4 * 8ā @ 100% 2 mins rest.
Doable but the last effort was hard. Not looking forward to 4 * 16ā @ 102% in a few weeks time.
Anybody else on week 1 of HV POL.
Just starting the first week, did my ramp test and now Sheep Mountain (4x8ā @ 100%) 4m rest, total of 80" of riding. Should be interesting since i havenāt done proper intensity in a while
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A quicxk blog post of my first week of HV plan.
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I have just finished week 2 of POL 6 weeks base plan. Its amazing and i really like it.
After the first 6 weeks block i will do it for a 2nd time and then do the 8 weeks builder POL. Selected mid range and that is okay for me.
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Good news. Keep up the good work and keep us in the loop on how you are progressing.
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I went overboard I think with the POL thing.
Took today off. Might do a writeup when Iām done, think Iām quite a bit ahead of everyone else here as I pre-empted the launch and started POL training a couple weeks before official launch.
Think next week will be the end of my HV 8 week build POL plan. Have quite a few observations to date, but really need to test after some recovery and see if itās been worth the hours Iāve put in which have beenā¦ rather hefty.
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Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
Time for an update on the first 8 week block of HV POL. I stopped after 5 weeks as I had a bad accident on my bike causing me to have an immediate hip replacement and a broken collarbone.
However I had come to some conclusions based on the time spent following the plan.
- Polarised is easy to follow.
- Two hard sessions a week is enough for me at aged 64 but it was also enjoyable and not too taxing.
- I had a real difficulty in keeping in Seiler Z1 based on power but on HR it was quite easy. I think that was my overall issue with the block and it was nothing to do with TR plan, rather the vagueness of Seilerās advice.
- It is a plan that is ideally suited to a Masters athlete in my view.
- I cannot advise on the efficacy of the block I did but I felt I was putting good time and good effort in over each weekly period.
- I do not see it as good for the TR business model if a lot of users took up these plans. This is for two reasons
a) The Z1 efforts are quite boring on TR. Great if you are outside or on Zwift etc but really there is not much you can do with 2 hours at 70% of threshold
b) After a couple of weeks of following the plan you realise that actually you do not need a training plan. Polarised is a very simple method to manage yourself and I suspect that eventually those following a POL plan would not need to use TR at all.
In summary, once I get back to base level fitness I will continue following a polarised model but I doubt that I would follow a TR plan
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Get well soon John.
Wow, terrible crash and results. Rest up and heal up soon.
Sorry John. Thatās terrible. Heal up fast.
Sorry to hearā¦ and i do agree with you that z1 (or z1-z2 coggan) are boring on the trainer. But theyre also āeasierā to do on the trainer for maximum benefit (0% coasting for better adaptations, avoids accidents ā¦ get well soon by the way, keeps you honest and on target the whole time, can even allow to multitask with podcast or watching shows, as a parent it also lets you spend more time with the family)
Unless you have the perfect settings and roads, its quite hard to have a continuous 2-hour on the trainer be equal to 2-hours outside as youāre bound to stop outside.
And when you have 6 months of winter like i do, riding inside might be way more enjoyable.
Also these plans will help avoid burnout, so it might keep users coming back instead of just saying āthis is too hardā and quitting altogether
You make excellent points though
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This had been my experience as well. Trainer road threw in some proper easy rides that i had never done before when riding outside. I think the endurance rides are quite easy to handle since i just plop on a movie and watch that or some new series that i only mildly care about.
Long easy rides are a lot harder on my butt though, so i do stop and stand up and stretch every 15 minutes. Im also on rollers so this is pretty helpful for those longer rides, as standing is quite hard to pull off.
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I started the MV pol plan the week after it released.
The VO2 workouts were great, every one felt challenging but doable.
Threshold not so much. My guess is thatās due to an overzealous ramp test result putting me too high above real FTP, but the longer 16m threshold workouts were just not doable for me at 100% TR FTP. After the second failed workout in a row on those, I subbed some lighter workouts that felt more accomplishable, but still struggled (mental, at least partly, but also noticed way higher HR than.
I put both Z2 workouts on the weekends as outdoor rides, and generally stuck to them or even longer rides. Loved this part of polarized (no 2hr SS workouts was fantastic). Definitely could feel my endurance getting better too; it was easy to notice where I started dropping off when my HR started climbing.
End result was an FTP drop of -3 (264 ā 261). Iām not too concerned about that, itās a 1% drop. I am currently doing the 6 week block again, but swapped my threshold workouts for an easier progression (3x10, 4x10, 3x15, 4x15, 3x20 in the 95-99% FTP range) in the hopes of successfully completing them. If that fails again, I think Iād probably try dropping my ramp test FTP by a couple % points.
My understanding is that I shouldnāt necessarily see an FTP increase with the pol plans, but better TTE on lower / middle efforts. Still, itās hard to resist the urge to go back to SSB / SPB plans (albeit maybe a LV one with added Z2 rides) where I did see more gains.
I do wish AT would work for the polarized plans too (not that Iām currently in the beta). Itād be nice to not have to figure out replacement workouts myself. Now that workout levels are released, I do think it should be a bit easier for me though.
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