Thanks for doing that. btw, here is how AT ranked me:
f30: achievable
f60: stretch
f120: not recommended
f180: not recommended
Makes sense since I’ve been doing mostly endurance stuff the last few weeks with a few 20 second sprints thrown in every once a while.
Its the same for me, I think AT is very much a work in progress. I did LV SS base 1, had failed a couple of workouts, and AT kept turning down the duration and intensity. I’m sure the failures were at least in part due to the fatigue from all the intensity. I’m building out the rest of the winter with custom workouts and schedule. Also, that’s why I started with 30 sec on and 90 sec rest.
Tom
Thanks for the link. It was an interesting listen. Reinforces where I have been heading with 2 harder workouts in the week and the rest Z2.
Thanks. I have restarted tracking my HRV today. I have been tracking my sleep. I guess what I’m looking for is a way to track if my body needs rest even though I feel good.
For me, I can have a bad night of sleep and not feel bad the next day and even preform well during workouts.
I’m thinking HRV will tell me I’m tired and need rest even if I dont feel drained…we will see.
thanks again for the response
I’m 71.
Have ridden all my adult life, but only begun using TR when the pandemic hit, so nearly 2 years. I begun with the sweet spot plan, which is significantly different to the traditional periodisation approach, I had used.
Had read that the Polarised approach has many benefit for seniors. So switched to that as soon as the TR trial of it was published. But, not very impressed with TR’s take on it. The low zone workouts are all long rides, assuming that everyone would rather do fewer long rides than more regular shorter rides in that low zone. The high intensity intervals are all long intervals, eg. repeats 10-15minutes, hence not so intense. TR reference Paul Laursen but only his earlier work, his current high intensity recommendations are distinctly different, particularly their intensity and duration levels, some being very short but lots of repeats, eg, 5 sets of 20x 15sec +15secs. So ended up just creating my own blocks, but that means you lose the Adaptive functionality.
Like others found my FTP improved during the sweet spot training, but it didn’t have the impact on my 20-40km TT performance.
Some injuries led to my physio wanting me to improve my joint strength, so have spent the last 6 months doing 2-3 strength sessions per week. Only now getting back into more bike specific training.
My Polar Ignite gave me an ANS of - 9.6 today after my booster jab on Wednesday. Wasn’t planning to train in any case.
I am 61 and, as others have said, TR plans traditionally have had insufficient rest and recovery for me and I end up going my own way. I am retrying now hoping the adaptive feature helps, and building in an extra off day every other week and a rest or easy week every 4 weeks or so around lots of life events/plans. Nonetheless, I would recommend TR still even for over 60 with extra attention to what you know about your body and its needs. The plans can’t be viewed as formulaic, must follows, for us, but directionally they make a difference.
I did SSB LV 1, 3 rides per week plus 2 strength sessions. Three intense rides/week for this 67 year old is too much. Several times, Adaptive training turned down the intensity due to failed workouts, which were failures not because I couldn’t do them, but was insufficiently recovered from previous workouts. I’m switching to a completely self built polarized plan with just 2 intense workouts/week, and increased volume of Zone 2 training. YMMV
Above two posts just reiterate the battle with TR plans. I do 2 days intensity/2 days endurance, 2 days strength on my intensity days.
I failed on my first workout under AT yesterday - Leconte - this morning I felt like I was starting with a cold so quite possible I was under the weather without truly realising it. I did notice that my HR at the start of the workout was about 20bpm higher than normal, possibly another sign. I’m 62 BTW.
AT gave me adaptations for the next two weeks’ Threshold workouts:
Warlow+2 (5.5) → Reinstein (4.5)
Leconte (5.9) → Tunemah (4.8)
I do a physical job so I need to be careful with intensity. My next block, starts around New Year, is one of the Polarised Plans so I’ll see how that goes with AT.
I am 70 in my 4th year of TR. It is such a great way to Train intelligently.
Just turned 60 today. I guess I’m part of the group. Doing a low volume plan but add alittle extra volume when I feel like more.
There are posts about TR and older cyclists in a number of threads, some asking for masters’ plans or other accomodations within the AT world. The Pez article below has a number of simple suggestions. I’m curious of those who have adopted some changes like them, have you adopted them while on AT, or does AT force some things that are not aligned with some of this. Bottom line, who has been good with AT meeting their needs as an older cyclist, and who still looks to TR to do more in terms of masters/older folks plans?
edited to add: I forgot one other variable, which is Plan Builder vs your own plans. According to TR your personalized plans still can be tuned by AT. If you’d share your experience with that it would be helpful too.
BTW, love the pics of the guys I followed – Moser, Kelly, Museew… There’s hope for us/me:)
With 3 months to go before I hit the big six-oh, under a coach he has me doing all/most of those suggestions.
I’m finishing up the “experimental” polarized plan this week and will likely continue with a self-designed extended polarized plan for the next month at least. I’ve enjoyed TR’s version so far but have opted out of some of the longer Z2 rides so my results may not be optimal.
Good article from PezCycling. The chronic training load is something I don’t have much trouble with as my weekly mileage is usually <120 miles. If you want to check out peers, a couple of tools in addition to following on Strava: (1) I created an Over 60 TR Club on Strava with 47 members currently. Reno, Nevada Club | Trainer Road 60 Plus on Strava. It shows the weekly mileage stats for each member, even if you don’t follow them. (2) There is also the TR Team Over 60 Log In to TrainerRoad with 59 members, which allows reviewing workouts and FTP/WKg for our peers (unless their profile is private), along with a workout feed.
I have moved away from TR plans to my own modified system. I now have a better understanding of what to do to adjust my plan which became more apparent as I have entered the 60s when recovery had to become the focus. While my mind wants to do high intensity, I do better with limiting it to 2 hard days and the rest endurance days. Added strength training this year as well. So far it is all working.
I left AT running. Dont know why as it doesnt really work to what I am doing. If you mess with the plan you mess with AT’s logic in my view. I want to push my hard days hard and I have to sub other days for easier endurance rides. AT isnt set up to do that so I am basically doing my own adjustments to ride duration and intensity. The PLs make life easier and lets me focus on picking the ride types that I need to do to improve.
After a fall of Sweetspot, I’m currently doing a personalized plan with 3 days of zone 2 and 2 days of intensity which now is a progression working up to Friel’s recommmended 3min x 5 reps VO2 workouts. 6 hr of zone 2, one day of weight lifting (which leaves me trashed), and 2 days of VO2 intervals. So far its working out with intermittent fasting to loose some extra adipose.
On the max efforts 30 to 90 seconds every 7 to 10 workouts, what workout is your coach giving you and how does that fit into the week? is it substituted for the hardest workout of the week?
My coach is not Tim Cusick, the coach that wrote that Pez article. My coach has me doing some form of high intensity almost every week. Plus I throw in (athletes choice) one or two 5-15 second sprints at the end of a couple workouts most weeks.
So, if I am following a non TR base plan which has sweet spot bursts etc, 5 to 15=seconds max power, do you think that is a long enough interval to cover the ‘year round intensity for masters’.