Sweet Spot (Ferreira) and 'top of thigh' pain

Training
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A long-term reader of the forum and first-time poster, the TrainerRoad forum contributions and community members have always been very helpful, so thank you!

I appreciate what I’m about to ask is quite contextual and difficult to pinpoint without watching me ride and see Wattbike setup/fit, but I thought I’d ask the community if anyone else has experienced the same issue and how they went about resolving it? I’m not sure whether to get a bike fit, see a physio or get a Personal Trainer. The answer legitimately might be all of them, I’m sure all will happily take my money :slight_smile:, but I wanted to ask those with experience of TR Sweet Spot/Threshold workouts if they’ve had the same pain?

I’ve been using TrainerRoad for structured training for well over a year and have an FTP that got up to 350w last year but have always struggled with Sweet Spot/Threshold workouts and I’m keen to overcome a localised pain (8/10) that ultimately ends my workout.

I backed off training on the bike in November and December to do a dedicated strength training phase which went well. From December, I’ve been working my way through Traditional Base - High Volume and am now on Traditional Base - High Volume III and am at the start of Sweet Spot progression… A familiar problem has come back…

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I make it through the 3rd block but jump off to stretch. I start to feel discomfort/fatigue as expected but more so in my hamstrings and at the top of my thighs (the 8/10 pain). I don’t experience this any other time apart from when the training plans introduce Sweet Spot and Threshold and this is also true whether I attempt the effort indoors on my Wattbike or outdoors on an Endurance setup bike. I feel like if I can fix this, I can really progress with the outdoor riding I want to do.

Has anyone experienced anything similar? What helped? If this was you, where would you start? My inclination is more Strength and Conditioning work (Hip Thrusters and Hamstring work) but would appreciate anyone that can relate and give advice…

More context, I’m a weekly Pilates class attendee, don’t think I have hip impingement issues and am fuelled for the workout (SIS Hydro tablets x2 in 500ml x2, SIS Beta Fuel Nootropic Gels x2 etc)

Many thanks,
Michael

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So it’s likely the combination of long moderate effort that’s is reinflaming a healing tear. Easier and it doesn’t get irritated shorter/harder and it doesn’t have time to irritate.

I have had that top of thigh pain, and my only advice is time off the bike.

Or, as I am rewatching House m.d., it’s a mini tumour that’s travelled to your thigh from your brain, knocked loose by an anthrax infection picked up from tainted energy gels. Start yourself on triptofan to rule out lupus, get an MRI for the cancer and a lumbar puncture to identify the STDs picked up from the Pilates teacher.

And welcome to the forums :woman_health_worker:t2::stethoscope::xray:

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Don’t have an answer but bumping your thread up. I get knee pain and radiating thigh pain doing too many sweet spot workouts. I had been struggling with this the past few weeks and now I think am going to drop the SSB plan and instead switch to something polarized. After weeks of feeling the same aching pain, on Friday I decided to just do a threshold workout instead. 4x6 minutes at 105% of FTP. No Pain. None. Not even a twinge. During or after. And none for the next three days (went skiing). But 9 sets of 6-9 minutes in sweet spot the day before and I was taking breaks to foam roll during the ride and dealing with the pain the rest of the day and all night.

I think that I’m using some different muscles during sweet spot intensities… perhaps relying more on the hip flexors.