Hi, I am curious about the variation in TSS weekly, and typical (6 week average) training loads that people are doing.
Last year, starting Time Trials my average weekly TSS was around 400. (and 6 week average)
Over winter, since starting TrainerRoad, I lifted it
- 500 in October/ November, (6 week average)
- Between 550 and 630 from December, through to Feb, with a gentle rise,
- Last 3 weeks with more outdoor rides, I am at the top end of that, with peaks of 830 in a week.
I am curious, partly from a “What is realistic?” and “What variation in load is realistic?” perspective. (Though I can listen to my own body of course).
I have seen distribution curves of power to weight ratios at various ages. Do you have:
- A curve of typical 6 week TSS (which I recognise might vary with time of year/season)
- The variety/spread of weekly TSS that people typically do.
Thoughts @chad @Nate_Pearson?
You can look at the plans and see the weekly TSS and how it varies from week to week.
Not all TSS is equal. You can do two workouts w/the same TSS and have entirely different levels of fatigue and recovery requirements. Imagine a week of all endurance rides giving you a total TSS of XX. Now imagine a week of only threshold rides giving you the same total TSS. it’s not the same.
Realistic is what your body can handle and recover from so that you can continue to train w/out injury and/or becoming too fatigued to complete your next workout.
Track TSS. Don’t chase TSS and/or live and die by it. It’s just a number!
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I know that I can track my TSS. I am just curious how what level I am doing compares with others on TR.
Okay… I’m 47. I can handle the HV plans w/out issue. Up until Feb, my typical 6wk avg TSS was in the 600s. I haven’t done real training in a while. So the weekdays were almost always tempo and the weekend long w/efforts.
That said, I know guys who can’t handle the HV plans. I also know guys for whom 600TSS is a big week.
Since Feb, I’ve been limited to averaging less than 6hrs/wk and probably around 300TSS give or take.
No idea about the distribution curves of all TR users, or even how you’d plot that, but here are my PMC and weekly TSS charts.
I’ve got a 190km gravel race in less than 2 weeks so I’ve been building the volume towards that. My starting point in October was pretty low as I had no energy over the summer months. I was also ill at Christmas and had a couple of weeks off the bike.
I was tracking intensity distribution for a while but did quite a lot of rides without a power meter so it was a pain.
My volume is nothing special (just like my ability) but I think the progression of TSS isn’t too far off from what it should be. I’m not following a TR plan.
Mike
