Yup, or they stick to the prescribed 115% (or whatever) intensity when they should be going much harder. From what I’ve seen they most reliable indicator of hitting the required intensity for VO2’s is that you are gasping like a fish out of water. So if you aren’t hitting that feeling then you aren’t doing a VO2max workout. You’re just riding a little hard.
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I did ‘The Destroyer’ yesterday. I’m 61, have a new hip, and I survived. Not to smack you in the face, but damn. This was an anaerobic nightmare, and I survived. For me, the 3 hour ‘endurance rides’ hurt.
But that shows that long ‘easy’ rides really can wipe anyone out. If the Destroyer was 90 minutes long, I’d probably literally BE destroyed. It has enough 90 watt intervals to soak up the pain of the way over FTP ones.
Bottom line, I feel I should be grateful that they hurt. I should be glad they hurt. I should be damned grateful that I can even get back on the bike and still punish myself so much. (I just am exploring the limits on how much punishment I can endure before I ‘die with my cleats on’ apparently) The wife thinks I’m insane. I tell her I’m training for the next wife, and she wonders if there will be anything left for her.
Ride it like you stole it, enjoy the pain, be glad you are still alive, and Ride On!!!
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