I’m listening through the podcast now myself and I must agree with @drkpolo. Chad states in some of the podcasts that people new to structured training should start with the low volume plans, since the strain of structured workouts are different.
I would consider going down to the low plans, if you want to ride with your girlfriend, know that the low and medium plans share most workouts. You could do endurance workouts on the two remaining (but keep it easy) if you want to ride all rides together.
@bbarrera bring out a good point, that might be beneficial to you. This also aligns with what @mcneese.chad writes about here: Alternate Sweet Spot Base, Work : Recovery Week Layout (what he calls Option 1). This gives you 3-4 weeks of load before recovery during SSB. I belive the principle can be applied to build as well.