This is excellent
If you havent, try it… you migth surprise yourself.
I am just explaining why people do it… and get more productive workouts, if it not for some I understand. But my point is there nothing to not understand in the turn off egg and go as hard as you can across all intervals advice plus there is no erg mode outside.
That’s exactly it though, many short/short VO2 workouts DO NOT have 120% targets… For the reasons outlined above… This is a “relatively” low PL one (3.9) Log In to TrainerRoad and has the work intervals at 125%. There are many which use 130% and some up to 135% - which is well into the anaerobic power zone.
As I said above - VO2 max is a physical state (maximum oxygen uptake), the power zone called VO2 max is really “power @ VO2 max” which is essentially the power that would elicit maximum oxygen uptake in you (over an interval of 3 minutes or so). There’s no reason why in a short/short structure workout that the “on” interval power target would have any relation to the power zone labelled VO2 max.
I agree about the pacing aspect though, I do usually leave mine in Erg and if I think the intervals have not quite been hard enough I just lift the intensity towards the end - usually give myself a set to see how it is going first. And I don’t change it much, since AT came in I found it pretty quickly adjusts to serve me new workouts at the right interval level anyway (be it 130% or whatever) - what you said below:
Is exactly what I did this time round, when the 120% short/shorts were too easy I just ranked it easy until AT served me more productive ones (i.e., where my HR actually got above tempo…). I always find it weird as I don’t have great short power (<5 mins) generally, but these short/shorts I tend to find quite easy.
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It is interesting to see the difference between my Coggan classic zones and iLevels.
Level 5 “vo2max”
- 288 to 329W (106-120%) for Coggan Classic
- 281 to 413W (104-153%) for Coggan iLevel FRC/FTP with a timespan of 2 minutes (413W) to 20 minutes (281W)
Level 6 “anaerobic”
- 329 and above (121+%) for Coggan Classic
- 413 to 667W (150-250%) for Coggan iLevel FRC with a timespan of 30 seconds (667W) to 2 minutes (413W)
The iLevel numbers can be very different between people.
After AT was introduced, I seem to recall seeing at least one or two vo2max workouts at 130% (probably 2-min intervals). TrainerRoad appears to have widened the zone5 and zone6 (and other zones too), but ‘hidden’ that in the progression level.
I had Bird in my plan last month with 130% intervals, thankfully they were only (only 
) 1min long. I made the mistake of thinking it was long enough for ERG I was wrong 
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Excuse the hijack.
I’m in a similar position. No VO2 work for a while so PL set at 1. Originally my suggested workout was San Cristobal 4.0. I know that this is too easy from past experience. I’ve pushed it up to Wild Snow 5.5 using alternatives, but I’m pretty sure that this will also be too easy.
Can I just drop in something like Mills +2 or will this muck up AT? Would I be best leaving or removing Wild Snow, if I were to do that?
Push it up to a workout where you get interval duration/intensity at a level that suits you. You can switch it to Mills +2 as well using alternates, but you will have to search for alternates in all duration to get ut up since it is a shorter workout.
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Thanks @Torneng, that was a typo on my part. I actually meant Mills+3, which is 90 mins as well.
I got impatient and went ahead with it anyway 
. I got through it no bother, so my suspicions were correct. It’s given my PLs at decent bump, so I’m back on track.
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