Overreaching: do I still get training benefits or do I have to start over?

Training
1

Do I started build last week, without ramp test. Doesn’t work for me, but also means I am sometimes overreaching or underreaching. So I try to look at my FTP combined with RPE and HR to see whether I am on track, over, or under.

Avalanche Spire was fine. Red Lake was a little bit too much at the end. And yesterday I have my VO2 where I just didn’t have the legs to finish the last three intervals, so I lowered my FTP from 240 to 236. Reasoning: better finish workouts and a bit too easy, than constantly overreaching and also getting “training anxiety”.

Capture
Capture1654×364 58.3 KB

So my question is: assuming it was overreaching, do I still get training benefits? Or is it more wise to repeat week 2 of build after this week and see myself nailing every workout begin to end?

2

You only turned it down a few % on the last two intervals, or did the whole workout at the lower FTP?

Even if you dropped the whole workout a few watts, it was such a small drop, you were still working at VO2 intensity, and got the benefits there.

If you only dropped the final 2 intervals, you got even more benefit, but AT would call this a “struggle” workout.

TL;DR You got the benefits, no need to repeat the week.

1 Like
3

Only down for the last 2 intervals -2%. But I took a longer break in between just to get by breath back. I could breath during (like what Coach Chad says: saturate breathing, but not gasping).

Thanks! Sometimes I realy feel insecure about whether I am pushing too hard or whether it just WAS hard (for other people as well would have been).

4

Then I would say your FTP is set correctly and you got the workout done. I think CC has said even if you take a short break between intervals (seconds, not minutes) you’re still getting the majority of benefits from the workout.

The only caveat might be keep an eye how next week goes. If the struggle continues or gets worse, it might mean for VO2 workouts (or others) your FTP is set too high. VO2 is different for each of us - your current VO2 max might not be at 120% yet, or at 120% for certain durations below, for example 3 minutes.

1 Like
5

I only take the long intervals between the sets, not between the actual intervals themselves (except the last 2). So I guess that’s ok then. I typically can mentally push myself through the workload. But when I am “out of the zone” in the rest intervals I am like “damm… and now I have to do this 2 more times”.

6

The joys of being on the limit.

There are plenty of times I think “There’s no way I can do the next one…” and yet, after the recovery valley, I find I can do the next one…and the next…etc.