Hey everyone, first of all, sorry if this has been answered already, but I really couldn’t find the specific answer to my question.
There is one thing I do not understand about training plans. I’ve been following a plan with a specific planned TSS. I also commute by bike Mon - Fri for around 1 hour each day. Because of the commuting, my TSS totaled 671 instead of the 486 my plan recommended.
I did all the planned workouts this past week, but altogether it felt pretty exhausting and it was kind of a challenge to stay motivated. I mean, my VO2 max peaked, so I’m not complaining too much, but I was wondering if the automatic adaptations shouldn’t account for the extra commute-TSS and wind down my training sessions? Because they basically stay the same, no matter if I add commutes or not.
I also have a 30min each way commute and can confirm that the plan does sometimes adapt because of it - but it is rare.
I have found that you can sneak quite a lot of extra TSS into a week without effecting upcoming workouts - i.e. it doesn’t appear that the adaptive training plan is targeting a specific TSS and doesn’t necessarily try to keep the TSS at the planned level.
I think adaptions will only occur if the system thinks that the extra work you have done will affect the quality of and/or your performance in the upcoming workouts.
Well, it depends. I use a very heavy bike and sometimes I tend to push it a bit. This week I try to hold myself back, so that I don’t “waste” too much energy . The TSS from the commute is usually around 18-25 per ride.
I do have a power meter and my commutes are also usually around 20-25 TSS - but that is proper soft pedaling - you might be doing more work than TrainerRoad is crediting you for.
Thanks, that definitely makes sense. The thing is, I don’t necessarily think that the commutes change my actual performance regarding numbers all too much. It usually just feels a lot more challening…
No, I don’t have a powermeter on my commute bike. I was thinking about this as well but they would cost more than the entire commute bike so I’m kinda holding back.
TR should capture that in the survey resonses - you start saying that rides are “very hard” when they should just be “hard” for instance then you will start to see adaptions making furture workouts easier.
Yeah, I actually respond that way, but the adaptations are still pretty minimal. As I said, number-wise my performance is still pretty good. It seems that even if it feels exhausting as hell, my HR stays pretty low for my standards. This is probably also the main reason my Vo2max has been rising.
Good advice with the RPE on commutes, I have to try this! Riding slower is also something I’m trying but it is pretty hard. I usually try to overtake roadies if I see one with my 15kg-something steel commuter
Beware, if you can’t get your HR up, it can also mean you have long term fatigue.
If you feel always exhausted, try to lower TR plan volume:
let commutes be your main Z2 volume filler, add them to plan as “Solo rides” with appropriate duration
keep hard days, lower number of those days 3 → 2 if still feeling exhausted. But keep quality high, with half-baked intervals you tire yourself but do not drive adaptions enough
if possible, keep one long Z2 ride during weekends (2h+)
Definitely don’t do this: it turns your Z2 into something else and it possibly ruins your next hard day. If you can’t contain yourself, turn them into something useful: limit number and duration of your bursts. E.g. 3-4x 15sec sprints, give yourself plenty of slow riding/recovery between those bursts. Look up TR workouts catalogue “Workouts / Endurance / With Bursts” for examples.
I’ll reiterate what everyone else who has replied has said, your commute should feel easy ride at Z1/Z2. If you have a hard TrainerRoad session the night before err on the side of Z1 and make your commute a recovery ride. You said you don’t have a powermeter but I assume that you must be wearing a wrist based HR monitor, so pace yourself by HR, no more than your mid Z2 HR. No sprinting, no chasing, if you are getting off to push up a steep hill still keep an eye on your HR, its easy to push Z4/Z5 walking up a steep hill.
First things first, I’d recommend changing your training approach from “demanding” to “balanced,” which should make Adaptive Training more sensitive to your commutes.
If you aren’t aware, you can find that in your account settings under “Adaptive Training.”
It looks like four of your weekly workouts are endurance rides. If you’re already going to be commuting an hour each day, I wouldn’t force yourself to hop on the trainer for another 90 minutes of endurance work if you’re tired. Instead, focus on keeping your commutes as good quality rides.
Let me know if this helps and if you have any questions moving forward!
. The TSS from the commute is usually around 18-25 per ride.
