Plan Builder - Intensity Days

Training
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1

Hello,

I have a question regarding my training plan. I ride primarily MTB and gravel, focusing on longer duration events from 4h local Marathon XC races to 12h+ races (Leadville, Unbound, etc).

This year I want to increase my overall training volume and would like to plan to ride 5 days per week for a total of ~7hrs. It could be a bit more when including outdoor rides on the weekend.

Here is what I currently have in my plan:
M: OFF + Strength Training
T: Hard Intervals 1h15
W: Easy Ride 1h15
TH: Hard Intervals 45 min + Strength Training
F: OFF
Sa: Hard Intervals 2h
Su: Endurance 2h

This is what Plan Builder recommends:
M: OFF + Strength Training
T: Hard Intervals 1h
W: OFF
TH: Hard Intervals 1h + Strength Training
F: OFF
Sa: Hard Intervals 45min
Su: Endurance 2h

Plan Builder recommends 3 intensity days for me. I get that the recommendation has lower durations than I’d like to plan, ~5 hours total over 4 days vs ~7 hours over 5 days.

I am wondering if I should go with 5 days ~7 hours, and make it a Masters plan and only have 2 hard intensity days?

Would the extra time in Z2/endurance help or hinder my performance in achieving my overall goals for MTB/Gravel races?

I should add that I am in my mid 30’s, have a toddler, and am not great at getting good sleep consistently with family life and work priorities.

Thanks

2

Hey there,

I think going with the Masters Plan approach would be a good idea if you’d like to increase your volume. Many athletes find that some extra Z2 time is beneficial to their performance! It can also be helpful to decrease intensity if you increase volume to make sure your plan stays balanced and allows you to properly recover between hard sessions.

TrainNow and Workout Alternates can also be useful tools for you if you’d like to add some extra volume into your plan when you have more time available to do so.

Be sure to keep in mind how you’re feeling as you bump things up, though. Red Light Green Light can help guide you there by giving you warnings if you’re taking on too much training stress too quickly. Don’t be afraid to back off the volume/intensity if needed – especially as I see you mentioned that you may not get great sleep all the time. Rest when you need to and remember that staying consistent over time is the big key to getting faster!

Hope that helps you out – feel free to let me know if you have any additional questions!

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