Hi, interesting question about the ammonia - but no, all smells normal. I eat a varied diet with lots of veggies and plenty of low GI carbs, as well as legumes, eggs, fish and meat. I always have a big appetite and I’m never trying to contain calories.
I have been the same weight between 52 and 55 kg basically for the last 20 years. I’m 40, slender but not thin. I haven’t lost any weight since starting TR. From what I gather from all the responses I got is that my best option might be to reduce to mid volume for a while and see if that makes a difference.
I appreciate that you took the time to reply.
Perhaps some more context to my statement. Quite often we see people here on the forum who nail base with their set FTP but then fail build. To my understanding it’s because base is generally fairly moderate in terms of intensity, build not so much.
Though as others have pointed out there could be other factors at play. Whatever it is, I hope you figure it out!
Thanks
Realistically reducing the volume is the only thing I can try since I’ve basically ruled out all other reasons for my epic failure
Yeah, it’s because you said you haven’t finished a single workout in HV build. To me, there are about four broad reasons why:
- equipment malfunctioning, and you’re working at higher resistance than you think
- workouts too hard - either, they are too high in power (which could be your FTP is set too high), or too long
- too much work in total (frequency and total time)
- recovery isn’t working, you’re run down, or not enough food or sleep
Think you’re ruling out 1. and 4., so it’s probably 2. or 3. Having an FTP set too high is very common, especially if you’ve got good anaerobic power and with the ramp test (lots of threads on here about that). Doing too much work early on is also very common, it works for a few weeks, but then you hit a wall.
The general gist is to maybe step it back a bit, pick the mid-volume plan and see how you get on. If you’re nailing all the workouts for a few weeks, then you could start adding extra z2 rides if you don’t feel challanged enough.
It certainly makes sense for build.
I for instance sake nail high volume base. I even add a ton of easy endurance riding and running to it. Though for build, I can only get away with mid volume. I also reduce running by a fair share during that phase.
I guess there is merit to the statement that not all TSS is equal and is not created equally.
If you haven’t had any blood work done recently maybe also go see your doctor to rule out anemia.
1 Like
I would suggest low volume. Mid volume is a lot of intensity also. The biggest difference between lv and mv is a z2 1 hr workout during the week and a long sweet spot workout on Sunday. I would add in the z2 workout to the lv plan and then add a long z2 workout on Sunday instead of the SS workout to minimize the intensity. At least until you know how your handling it. If you feel better you can always bump up to mv.
Was just going to post this ^
Iron deficiency / anemia?
Okay, bear with me…
| Month | Plan | Measurement | FTP |
|---|---|---|---|
| March | None | Pedals | ? |
| … | … | … | … |
| May | None | Trainer | ? |
| … | … | … | … |
| Sept and Oct | Rest | na | na |
| Nov | SSB HV? | Trainer | ? |
| Dec | ? | Trainer | ? |
| Jan | ? | Trainer | ? |
| Feb | ? | Trainer | ? |
And the pedals and trainer “matched” from eyeballing the numbers, or did you have power matching configured?
You do have some different options. Assuming health is good and equipment is working properly:
-
Reduce volume but maintain same intensity. Be cautious when simply moving from HV to MV to LV as intensity can change.
-
Change the Work to Rest ratio within the current plan. TR base is typically 5:1 and Build is 3:1. Personally, I ave success with the Base plans at 5:1 but find the Build programs work better for me at 2:1 (and I take all the weekly rest days for recovery).
-
Reduce Volume and Intensity. The TR plans are often heavy on threshold work. If gains are stagnated and you aren’t at potential, sometimes it is best to change things up. Some might throw in a VO2max block. Others might step back and do several months of zone 2. The easiest modification in TR is to take one of the weekend days (often longer and harder) and follow the alternative workout suggestion in the weekly notes.
Unfortunately, gains are not linear. Sometimes you take a step backwards to take several steps forward. As you reach potential for FTP, that number may not move much. There are other things you can do to keep improving.
Sounds like you have commitment and consistency nailed. Change things up a bit, make sure all the bits discussed above are in line and keep plugging away, no reason to be discouraged here!!
2 Likes
A lot of good thoughts listed, and I’ll just add one more option you don’t explicitly state on #3. Reducing the number of intervals in TR workouts.
1 Like
Hi Splash. Sounds like a plan. I’m due for a rest week anyway, and will rebuild a medium volume plan. Thanks for the advice.
1 Like
That makes a lot of sense actually. And generally speaking the longer the race the better I do. I suck at sprinting, always have. So I’m more of a diesel engine.
1 Like
Ok I hear you. So I can just do mv and go easy on the Sunday ride, which I do outdoors anyway. And if I feel pulp on a Wednesday I can reduce duration or intensity of my Z2. I’ll try this for the next block and see how it goes. Thanks for the advice!
2 Likes
Hi
Let me try and complete the blanks.
Month | Plan | Measurement | FTP |
- | - | - | - |
March | None | na | na |
… | … | … | … |
May | None | Trainer (not smart, no power data - no ftp) | ? |
… | … | … | … |
Sept and Oct | Rest | Did a long distance multi day tour | na |
Nov | SSB HV? | Trainer | 150 |
Dec | ? | Trainer | 157 |
Jan | ? | Trainer | 157 |
Feb | ? | Trainer | haven’t remeasured yet |
I had power matching configured. Plus I deactivated the synch from TR to Garmin watch because I wanted to see the power graphs from the Garmin power pedals. I definitely exclude wrong measurements.
1 Like