As I was doing longer distance swims and had no real kick, so used it as an excuse to save my legs for later, I doubt my gentle 2 beat flutter to maintain balance, counted as a “Whole Body Exercise” 
Did the Build Polarised HV plan change again?
Looks like it’s back to Tuesday having the shorter intervals! What’s the deal here, cookies messing with things or are they definitely playing with the workouts?
My currently scheduled workout (last actual interval session for the plan) tomorrow is 4x16min 100% FTP 2min recoveries:
But looking at the plans I see it’s changed again to Crown Mountain 4x16min 104% FTP 6 min recoveries:
To be honest, I’m kinda liking the new one. The thought of 2 min recoveries isn’t the best. Looks more like an hour of power test and who wants to do that! 
What would you go for if you had to choose?
Well, I began Build Mid Vol. and I am on 3rd week. Scheduled workout today was Mount Grant, 3x16 minutes on ftp level… I wasn’t able to finish the first block, I had to stop and pedal backwards and resume. I tried 2nd block reduced to 96%. I was able to stay for just 3 minutes…
Maybe wasn’t a good day or who knows…but I am thinking to do outdoors this kind of workouts with long segments. I will try to do these 16 minutes segments on a climbing road. I think it will be easier for me. If I see I go backwards on next ramp test scheduled, maybe I switch into a Build plan, not polarized… And if see ftp improvements on next ramp test, I will keep it…
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That’s a decision.
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Outside much more fun, but only if you approach it right too (I’ve also had some poor outdoor efforts recently with high RPE). I also had a failed workout last Tuesday by subbing the hard TR one for an easier Zwift group workout and I couldn’t handle it (spaded sweetie). It’s a joke compared to some efforts I’d been doing lately on POL but I couldn’t handle it.
Took 3 full days off after that and bounced back fresh. Some of the efforts I did this Tuesday past makes spaded sweetie on Zwift look like child’s play and I felt great doing it, heart rate high and breathing was open and efficient.
Sometimes you just need rest.
If doing the long 16min efforts indoors, I’d be tempted not to use ERG, but select something like Alpe Du Zwift and do them on that on maybe 40% trainer resistance so you can still spin decently.
Got through the 3 * 16 with 6 mins rest this week. But only just. Neither of the options you show for next week look at all fun. I am doing a 25M TT on Sunday so that should tell me that 4 * 16 is possible for me, which ai think it is.
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I did my last Ramptests in fatigued state at end of 4-6week training block. FTP from Ramptest is within 5watts of my lab MLSS power.
Todays workout from 6week POL MV -plan was 2x16min at FTP, 8min in between.
I rode efforts purely by feel, reduced rest to 4min and checked efforts at home from Garmin. Warmup 50min endurance pace, first effort 110%FTP second 112%. Cooldown 45min at endurance pace. I rated workout hard to AT.
Doing Ramptest in rested, well fueled state overestimates my true FTP and as a result, traditional TR plans have been too intense for me.
Very excited about these POL plans. Intervals are simple and easily done outside.
Having realistic FTP is essential for successful training.
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Reiterating a suggestion made previously: Properly fuel your threshold workouts. I had a hard time (stopped multiple times in the last interval) with San Pedro (4x8@threshold w/5min rest in between) in week one. It’s week 4 and I just completed Deseret (4x16@threshold w/8 min rest) and while uncomfortable was definitely doable with a bottle of 82g of carbs and a bottle of water as a chaser. That being said I’m still dreading Bartlett Peak which only has 3 min rests and ups the intervals by 2 percent.
I’m looking forward to my ramp test when it’s time, and while the numbers may not be drastically different, I feel stronger. Thank you TR for the plan and the software.
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I’m doing the 6wk MV plan and have pushed every workout outdoors - 2.5hrs+ on an indoor trainer ain’t my idea of fun. We’ve a few, OK a lot, of hills in the local area so I can choose one appropriate to the task at hand. Did Miller Peak yesterday and the hill was short by a minute or so but no big deal. I’ll be using it for Mount Grant and Deseret as well.
TBH anything under 90mins or so and I don’t need much refuelling on the bike provided I’ve eaten well in the previous couple of hours. Mostly it’s helping the post workout recovery.
So far, I am really enjoying the polarized training plan. I am in my second week of the 8 week MV plan. I chose the 8 week plan because of the rest period 4 weeks in. Generally, I feel that TR plans do not have enough rest built into them. Though, this is an empirical question and perhaps they do in fact have it right.
The workouts are fun and challenging. Whether they are optimal or not is not yet clear. I will report back later with my fitness gains at the end of the eight week block.
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Another happy customer here. I like those Polarized Plans.
As I said, not because I deem a pure polarized approach as superior over anything (it is not - at least not at all times).
But because the normal plans are all overly intense, overly complicated and overpopulate the week. So while they may have a very sophisticated and finely granulated TSS progression I can’t buy anything for this. Because all these normal plans are a devil to adapt for oneself.
- for when you are time-crunched, but not so as that you have 1 to 1.5 hours every day (that seems TRs sole angle on time-crunched people) but that you may have 8 to even 15 hours per week but just only an maybe max 4 days.
- for when you want to include any of the many very sensible things you could and should include into a well rounded training approach. And what also (rightfully so) is getting discussed inside the TR podcast. Strength and conditioning, Yoga, Long rides etc.
- for when you know how you react to a certain training stimulus and just want a bit more of it or think “man, this workout would be cool, but it’s too complicated to adjust on the fly with just the difficulty setting”.
The polarized plans solve all of this issues.
Each workout on each training day is meaningful. There is no “Pettit” als the nearly only Zone 2 ride in the whole week. And that one even feeling just as an afterthought or TSS filler. Meaning - if you want the zone 2 you’d have to kick any other workout of the week out and also kick the “Pettit” out and then you have room to put a real meaningful Zone 2 workout in. Meaning - you have some really annoying work to do to fit the old plans to somewhat sensible.
With the polarized plans - no need. What I see is what I like. 2 hours Perkins -1 (as an example) is as good as it need be. Easily on the fly adjusted up if I want (it’s rather low oriented - doesn’t matter), easily prolonged if I wanted. Already long enough for a start but just as easily adjusted to become longer.
Also the long Threshold interval workouts. The length of the intervals is finally meaningful and a very welcome addition to the TR workout library (would be even without the polarized plans). And I can adjust them without any hassle on the fly to a sweetspot or low torque K3 workout. Perfect!
And I also like the shortish 2 mins VO2 Intervals workout.
These are very nice plans.
And they are nicely malleable.
I did the 6 week medium volume because:
- it has only 4 days which I can adjust at will with either a 5th cycling workout or rather as I did with two full body strength workouts in a week (giving me 6 days of workouts per week)
- it has in my eyes a bit better inventory of slightly longer workouts from the early start on (where the 8 weeks pol plan seems lacking to me)
But - the 8 weeks pol plan has the better distribution of load and deload weeks.
I just figured I can more easily just end the 6 weeks pol plan after week 4 and do an easy week and then start the 6 week pol plan anew than adjusting the workouts inside the 8 weeks pol plan.
Currently in my 5th week of the 6 week pol plan (which as I just put has nothing to do with the actual 5th week of said plan but is a rest week). Will start the 6 week pol plan next week anew.
And - I actually didn’t do any of the long threshold interval workouts yet since these are not yet in my target. They will later.
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Thanks Guys for adding Polarized Plans to TR!
I wonder if you guys are planning on having a BASE/BUILD/SPECIALTY phases for polarized plans as well?
Cheers!
They already have the Base & Build identified.
- 6 week is BASE
- 8 Week is BUILD
Specialty is more likely best using the existing plans as appropriate for your event(s).
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Will the polarized plans be modified by AT? I haven’t seen if AT will modify a block added outside of plan builder. Thanks!
Posting here as a reference since I haven’t seen it elsewhere - the screenshot below shows the progression levels of the 6 week high volume polarized plan. The steps up each week are pretty dramatic - larger than I’d expected
@bfrostieone I just got added to the AT beta Monday and am on week one of a polarized plan - thus far no adaptations, but I imagine I’ll see some as I progress
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Took a look through the experimental plans, my suggestion would be to take MV and instead of having 4 days a week with a huge Sunday ride to split Sunday into 2 days and make MV 5 days. I know it’s not the same but having done 3+ hour rides this winter it’s not something I’d do again
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Sorry if this was asked above, I didn’t have time to read the entire thread…
I’m doing a 70.3 mid volume plan. I would like to swap out the 70.3 base with a polarized base LV (and keep the swim run workouts). How can I do this in plan builder?
Thanks!
As far as I know you can’t
Ugh… I was afraid of that. I’m a big TR fan but they really need to get the multi sport stuff sorted out.
Just to confirm my belief I created a quick Plan Builder plan. From calendar view, I can click on the note at the beginning of a block and can change the volume of the block (i.e., mid vol sprint to high vol sprint), but not change it to Polarized, or any other base/build/specialty block. Unfortunately, multisport is not a priority and it will probably always be way behind the cycling options. For me (as a triathlete) the calendar is mostly pointless to me since I would have to manually click “complete” for swim/run/strength workouts, and swim/runs don’t sync to my watch. Maybe someday…