Hi,
Hoping for a bit of advice. Let me first say that I am not used to doing 350-450 TSS on successive weeks. I have been avoiding elevators as going up the stairs hurts my quads a great deal. THe only thing different I am doing is adding 10k easy steps a day which I started about 9 days ago. So about 100k steps over 9 days and finishing up recovery week. My quads still feel super sore. I am not sure how I will start SSB MV2.
So my questions:
Is this a common experience? For those of you who have done SS MV1, do your quads feel trashed and sore to the point that going up a flight of stairs is a chore (not cardio wise but quads hurt). I feel that after the recovery week (Z2 rides) post SSB MV2, legs should feel ok.
Perhaps the fact that I have been adding N.E.A.T of 10k steps a day for additional fat loss is perhaps contributing to my plight.
Which one of the following strategies is better?
3a. Do SSB LV2. Add the workouts from SSB MV2 if my legs recover?
3b. Continue with SSB MV2 as planned but drop workouts for rest days to let legs recover.
Ha! I went back and reread that. Wow. I will say, I try to stay off my feat as much as possible, but I work a job where I am on my feet doing mostly manual labor. So, I am pretty thrashed by the end of the day and my workout. Iād have to imagine the added 10K steps isnāt helping. But, honestly, weāre not pros, we have to walk to do things. Are you getting enough sleep? Diet? Recovery?
Diet is on point and I am losing weight steadily. Working on sleep. Averaging 6.5 but working to get that to 7.5. THat was not my question though. I have additional questions.
Ok. Well, I think are some factors here. When I say diet, I donāt necessarily mean losing weight. I mean eating the right type of āgo fast foodsā, proper fuel consumption for your workouts and getting in the necessary carbs and protein after an intense workout.
You are adding 10K of steps. Im not one to count my steps or add any other sort of exercise to my cycling, so I canāt personally attest to this.
I think getting that extra hour of sleep will help.
Iām a few weeks into sustained power build. My legs are about trashed after every workout. But, I replenish with recovery, relax with my legs up, probably in my air relax space boots, try to get as much sleep as possible, and drink lots and lots of water.
I say continue with SSB MV2, if the workouts are too much, drop the intensity down a bit and see how that feels. Maybe drop your ftp and see how you are feeling.
Well that all depends on you and what your goals are. The MV plans are no joke and require you to be rather focused on training and recovery everyday of the week. LV you have some leeway. Soreness is okay, pain is not ā I know that is entirely subjective. I have been that person wavering between LV and MV and going forward I just use LV and plug in rides from MV, either to ride or be replaced outdoors.
FWIW, I switched jobs 6 months ago and the amount I walk, particularly up and down stairs, is astounding. 7.5-10k a day. Not much, but after training in the morning I get it.
Iāve been communicating with a really well respected fitter for about four months ā letās call it an email master class ā to help solve some issues that Iāve had in the past and to prevent them from coming back. During a 1-on-1 fit session a few weeks ago he compared how I squat and deadlift vs how I pedal. He noticed that Iām having a hard time translating the lifts to riding a bike and mentioned that itās pretty common ā we spend the rest of our lives walking/climbing stairs not pedaling so why would we be really good at moving our feet in circles 90x/minute for hours and hours at a time?
At least 12 times during the fitting he had me stop, sit up, adjust my posture, pivot, drop back to the bars and then he would poke my glutes to help get me to understand how to fire them. The result was a smoother pedal stroke and a bit less fatigue. When I got back home and did work on the trainer I found that I was experiencing a similar result at the end of a TR workout, and, more importantly, at the end of the day (makes taking the dog out for a walk and climbing 3 flights back to the apartment so much better). Unfortunately, I still donāt have this ingrained and, as things get harder (110% FTP+) I fall back on bad habits.
What am I getting at? Well, the more I dig deeper into this stuff the more Iām sure most of us would benefit from lessons on riding a bike the way tennis or golf enthusiasts benefit from spending a few hours with a pro.
I end up wondering if part of the soreness youāre experiencing is over-dependence on your quads. Might be worth trying to engage the glutes a bit more.
Maybe Iām just trying to see my shortcomings in everyone else
Tight hip flexors. Due to inertia riding a trainer can put more stress on hip flexors. Basically you engage them sooner and keep pressure on later through the bottom of the pedal stroke. Rest and start a stretch routine.
I would suggest you stop the 10k steps thing. Especially not during a recovery week! Itās worth much more to have good consistent sessions on the bike, in particular if you are after weight loss.
If youāre not used to the TSS (maybe even new to indoors?) why not try low volume first for the next week and when you feel up for it add in a few workouts from MV. The LV plan is not easy and definitely pushing your limits.
If youāre having troubles on stairs that means your workouts are not āhigh quality.ā Thereās no shame in ālowā volume, if followed consistently itās a great plan you can grow with. Add an extra workout to LV if you really want, but that level of suffering in MV is self-defeating.
I did LV last year and had great success. This year I bumped to MV and there is no way I could have done this plan last year. Itās a lot. My advice would be to do 3a and do a +1 of maybe your Tuesday or Saturday workout but keep just to the 3 days a week. Even adding a 4th workout is a lot on the legs. Maybe try that the first week and see how you feel.
I just did McAddie +1 with Galena today and then a recovery week.
I feel like I should rest after yesterdayās workout (above) because my workout quality feels diminished on the follow-up day. Is this in my head? Is a follow-up workout like Galena compromising progress gained from that work yesterday (hard, omg)? I donāt know when to listen to my body and when to listen to the science.
I should probably note that I turn 38 years of age next week, making me an aging athlete. lol
I feel my quads (soreness) going up stairs almost 99% of the time over the past 7+ months of TR, so Iād have to disagree here. Iām finishing up a recovery week and I still feel quad soreness. My āhigh qualityā of mid volume plans and soreness has taken me from 2.5 w/kg to 3.7 w/kg (will be higher with next Tuesdayās Ramp Test). These gains have occurred with no weight loss.
Itās not according to n=1, but I am struggling to find a solution to my soreness. Itās not fueling, hydration or recovery as Iāve experimented with that and have it pretty dialed. It MAY be the level of intensity of my z2 workouts which Iāve just started to reduce and see if that works.
My experience doing ssb hv (Iām at the end of week 4 of ssb2 so Iāve got a lot of volume in me) I was starting to feel more soreness in my legs earlier this week, felt like the volume was starting to catch up, but for a few days focused on finding more sources of protein and my legs feel good again.
Iād do Galena today even if you donāt feel great.
That type of SS workout shouldnāt require much freshness and getting your body used to performing with some fatigue is important. Before you know it your Sunday SS workout will feel like no big deal. If it were an intense 2hr VO2 workout it would be different.
Iām 38 as well and while I donāt feel like I did when I was 25, my body can take on a ton of work if I sleep and eat right. I knocked out 3hr 20min of SS at .88IF yesterday and somehow Iām climbing back on the bike today:)
Thanks, everyone for your response. I think I will take a complete rest today and on Monday. Hit the Ramp test on Tuesday and for the time being continue with Mid Volume. I will either do away with my 10k steps/day plan or decrease it drastically.
I have been taking the elevator whenever possible.
