Weekly training schedule... what would you do?

[Dead Man]

You're halfway through the current road race season, enthusiasm rapidly waning, turning in some mediocre results because you didn't train in the pre-season and are still 10lbs heavy. Because you're an alcoholic and seem to have lost all self control.

But then suddenly, you have 2 hours every AM that you can commit to training, and at least another day or 2 when another 2 hours could be committed in the evening, but irregularly. Weekends are generally for racing..... but who are you kidding? You've pretty much given up on the season, and really would be happy if you just went to podium ONE ****in' race, maybe later in the season, at this point.

What would your training schedule look like?

You also have a criterium course, miles of endless, stopless flats, and mountains with climbs ranging from short and easy to almost hors categorie, all within 5 minute ride from your front door.

Help a struggling brother out.

[Exonerv]

I'd start with eliminating any use of alcohol. First things first as they say...

[shovelhd]

What are your race goals for the rest of the season? What does the race mix look like? What category are you? What are your strengths and weaknesses? What is your current CTL?

I'll help, to a point.

[eBAUMANN]

I'd start with eliminating any use of alcohol. First things first as they say...

Yup. W/KG rules all.

That said, just keep racing, race hard.
Racing is a great way to train.

Ride every day, good pace, 30m-1hr, even if just commuting.
It does way more than you would think (ask me how I know).

Hill repeats, do em.
Builds strength and cardio.

All depends on the kind of racing you wanna do though obviously...

[Dead Man]

I should clarify - I've pretty much abandoned race ambitions for the season. Not actually necessarily looking for race training advice. I might even drop out entirely, or just do Monday night criterium series (since my fast-twitch is weak)

Short term goal is only to have an efficient, diverse, fairly concrete training program, for the purpose of getting generally strong again. Then maybe even think about some CX in the fall, restart a road training program next year and give road another go from a better place.

This really is mostly just a hypothetical what would you do if this was your schedule and fitness situation. I'll pick the parts that sound least miserable and incorporate them into my program :beer:

[Andy sti]

Hit some group rides. Head east to HR or the Dalles and do some long climby/gravel rides. Think of fun rides. Throw in fartlek type efforts in those rides to keep it interesting and keep some speed. Maybe do Tabor and PIR. For sure do cross!

[54ny77]

i would switch to light beer.

[AngryScientist]

I'd start with eliminating any use of alcohol. First things first as they say...

hahaha. that's funny.

[Gummee]

I should clarify - I've pretty much abandoned race ambitions for the season. Not actually necessarily looking for race training advice. I might even drop out entirely, or just do Monday night criterium series (since my fast-twitch is weak)

Short term goal is only to have an efficient, diverse, fairly concrete training program, for the purpose of getting generally strong again. Then maybe even think about some CX in the fall, restart a road training program next year and give road another go from a better place.

This really is mostly just a hypothetical what would you do if this was your schedule and fitness situation. I'll pick the parts that sound least miserable and incorporate them into my program :beer:
Now's a good time to take a break if you want to be fresh for CX season. CX is way more fun than an industrial park crit anyways!

M

[sandyrs]

Probably I'd just do a lot of rides in the mountains, and let the chips fall where they may for 'cross season fitness.

[rnhood]

Hit some group rides. Head east to HR or the Dalles and do some long climby/gravel rides. Think of fun rides. Throw in fartlek type efforts in those rides to keep it interesting and keep some speed. Maybe do Tabor and PIR. For sure do cross!

Agree, nothing will get you in cycling shape faster than participating in fast group rides. You'll start looking forward to the rides, you'll make new friends, and you'll kick you bad habits much quicker.

[Exonerv]

hahaha. that's funny.
Not if you're this guy...

"Because you're an alcoholic and seem to have lost all self control."

[gasman]

Decide on your goals. Define them clearly.
Get a coach- they can do wonders.
Joachim here has helped me a ton. He was way better than my old coach (me).

[Tandem Rider]

i would switch to light beer.

Bottled water??

[Tandem Rider]

A hike? Rock climbing? Canoeing?

I'm serious.

Sounds like burnout. Training is stressing yourself. Work is stress, problems with kids are stress, you sound over stressed. Lower your stress levels for a week or two, you might feel better.

[berserk87]

A hike? Rock climbing? Canoeing?

I'm serious.

Sounds like burnout. Training is stressing yourself. Work is stress, problems with kids are stress, you sound over stressed. Lower your stress levels for a week or two, you might feel better.

This is sound advice. When you are not enjoying your hobby, change something up. Maybe do some mountain biking, or find a way to change things up on the road. Maybe do an ultra-distance ride, or switch from mass-start races to time trials for a season.

There's no sense to continuing to do something for fun, and not actually having fun. There are trade-offs of course - we train hard so we can race and enjoy the racing. But when you are losing enthusiasm like you say, something is broken.

It doesn't sound like a training schedule will cure your funk. If you are having motivation issues about racing, then you may have to re-evaluate why you took up riding to begin with. Maybe that reason has changed? Maybe it's the same but it will not be possible to have a fulfilling season like you want, this year.

We all have weight issues, and training time issues. It's normal. Lack of enthusiasm is not. Whatever you do, I recommend trying to get back to having fun again, somehow.

And if you are not joking about the alcoholism, get started on fixing that. Especially if you have a family.

[54ny77]

Same thing.

Live the Ultra Life.

Just like Lance!

http://pzrservices.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451ccbc69e20133f2974b84970b-pi

Bottled water??

[Peter P.]

Not if you're this guy...

"Because you're an alcoholic and seem to have lost all self control."

Exactly. Burnout and "an alcoholic and seem to have lost all self control"- sounds like more than a coincidence.

Skip racing for the rest of the season. The burnout and alcohol use likely have a common cause. Get treated and focus on easier rides. Don't try to lose the 10lbs. by riding more; you're offsetting it with the booze intake so you won't make any headway.

[Dead Man]

Easy boys... My words came across more dire than intended. I'm not that bad yet. I don't think anyway.

True... I probably am suffering from a type of burnout. It FEELS like I'm burned out of being "fat" and slow, though, and the magic mushroom will be getting back to race cut for the first time since last summer.

Just need to discipline and organize myself.

But I'll tell you what... If after two or three 250+ mile weeks (more than double what I'm putting in a training week right now) I don't feel it coming back or my heart still isn't there, I'll take up crocheting for the rest of the season. My oldest crochets and finds it very rewarding.

[shovelhd]

First decide if you want to race cross to win this season. If you don't then there's no need for speed work, which means there's not a huge need to manage your rest. If you just want to race cross for fun, then you don't need to prepare. I agree with the others. Just do the group rides. Maybe look for a hillclimb or TT just for fun. For me the hardest part is turning off race mode. Once you get there your burnout should melt away and you should enjoy riding again.

As a retired racer, I ride 3-4x a week. I have no commuting opportunity. I do two group rides, a Wednesday night hammerfest, and a Saturday long group ride. In between I get out for 1-2 hours. I don't obsess about taking 2-3 days off in a row anymore. It really doesn't matter. I'm still plenty strong. The only real goal I have is to remain within 10 pounds of my race weight. I've been pretty successful so far, and I do enjoy my beer.

[shovelhd]

Easy boys... My words came across more dire than intended. I'm not that bad yet. I don't think anyway.

True... I probably am suffering from a type of burnout. It FEELS like I'm burned out of being "fat" and slow, though, and the magic mushroom will be getting back to race cut for the first time since last summer.

Just need to discipline and organize myself.

But I'll tell you what... If after two or three 250+ mile weeks (more than double what I'm putting in a training week right now) I don't feel it coming back or my heart still isn't there, I'll take up crocheting for the rest of the season. My oldest crochets and finds it very rewarding.

If you DO want to get back into race shape for CX, I'd make sure I was doing threshold work one day a week, and some VO2Max work one day a week. I like over unders for that. Then do your group rides, get some rest, manage your CTL, and have fun.

[nooneline]

You're halfway through the current road race season, enthusiasm rapidly waning, turning in some mediocre results because you didn't train in the pre-season and are still 10lbs heavy. Because you're an alcoholic and seem to have lost all self control.

But then suddenly, you have 2 hours every AM that you can commit to training, and at least another day or 2 when another 2 hours could be committed in the evening, but irregularly. Weekends are generally for racing..... but who are you kidding? You've pretty much given up on the season, and really would be happy if you just went to podium ONE ****in' race, maybe later in the season, at this point.

What would your training schedule look like?

You also have a criterium course, miles of endless, stopless flats, and mountains with climbs ranging from short and easy to almost hors categorie, all within 5 minute ride from your front door.

Help a struggling brother out.

Well, there are a jillion variables and designing a training plan over the internet is fraught, but I'd recommend using the time to ride more, and separating your easy riding from your hard riding.

Pick two days to ride hard, separate them a little bit. For one, do 1-minute all-out efforts, 6 of them, with full recovery (10+ minutes of going easy) between them. For the other day, go to one of your favorite hills and do hill repeats. I like 5x5(5) workouts - 5 mins on, 5 mins off, repeat 5 times. This should be an effort above your threshold.

For the other days, just get the miles in and spend some time at tempo, but save your spirit for the all-out efforts.

[Joxster]

Go ride a MTB event and has some fun. If it is possible go ride Track League, that'll help with fast twitch

[Raffy]

Sounds like burnout to me. This happened to me earlier this year after a long period of decent training and fitness improvement. Something just had to give.
Full disclosure - I don't race but I'm into fast group riding and training with power.

Anyway, here's what I did - I took a week (or close) completely off cycling. Just had to rid myself of whatever was stressing me out and it was cycling.
- No Strava viewing. Seeing others crushing it will just make you even more nuts about your break. Also, people will survive without your kudos.
- No TrainingPeaks. F my TSB, TSS, CTL, ATL, etc. It will be there in a week and the numbers will be what they are.
- No talking training. One of my closest friends is also my training partner so I REALLY avoided talking about riding and training. I think after a few days of snarky/short responses from me, he got the point.

When you get back:
- Didn't weigh myself first day back. I be heavy after a week off, no *****.
- Started off with a few moderate base/endurance riding for the first week. Not so much because I needed to re-base but because I didn't want an immediate reminder how my form slipped in a week by riding thresholds/interval.
- Resumed my regular training schedule in the 2nd week. Was surprised how much more motivated I was and how fresh my legs were the first fast/drop group ride I did.

Hope this helps. Obviously YMMV but I feel for you and I've been there too in some form or fashion.

[Dead Man]

I happened to suffer an iliac tendon injury about the same time I posted this thread, and haven't been able to climb. I have met my commitment to ride every morning (or day, at least), and mileage is jumping back up. I've been riding solely flats, it's a lot easier to crank out lots of mileage, just pushing 23mph around my usual flat loops. Very efficient, different, and has shined light on the futility of measuring training by mileage, instead of TIME. Think I'll probably start paying closer to time in the saddle, over miles or feet, going forward.

As to burnout... that's still a strong possibility. But I was probably just burned out of what I'd been doing, not necessarily riding. Burned out of hills and 4000-6000' training rides that take hours and hours and massive chunks out of my day. I've been at the total opposite end of the spectrum for two weeks, now, doing totally different riding than I'm used to. Flat open farmland, little traffic, EAR BUDS, long periods to just sit up and text or email - can't ever do that **** in the hills. Rides are 20-40 miles long, every day, instead of 40-60+, 2-3 times a week. Lot more practical to just slam out the miles before the workday starts.

I don't think I've started losing any weight (but I haven't been weighing in)... last piece of this puzzle will be to drastically reduce my alcohol habits, or even just cut it out entirely (which would probably not be a bad idea at this point). Not only in alcohol highly caloric, but definitely lends toward me making poorer food/snack choices in the evenings. I can eat great all day, knock a few back with dinner... now I suddenly have no compunctions about eating an entire bag of chips.

My most recent blood test came back with a really high HCT (have a condition that's left me chronically low-ferritin anemic... venofer and altitude has finally brought that back under control)... so I ought to be strong as hell. I bet if I incorporated some interval training (which, aside from climbing, I've done none of this season) and lost 15lbs, I'd be on the podium by the last week of the criterium series. I theorize that everyone strong has already upgraded this season - everyone left will be other disgusting fatbodies who don't train. If I can get my act together, I'll clean up, on those guys. :o

---

The local races are usually hilly, but rarely grueling. Never anything like my typical "hill training" rides. Obviously races being at race-pace more than makes up for that in suffer factor... but still, the climbs just never are that bad. If over 5-6%, never gaining more than a couplefew hundred feet. Anything gaining substantial elevation will be more like 3-4%. Total elevation gain for the sub-1/2 cat road races will pretty much always be less than 3,000', usually more like 1200-1500.

Compare this to my above-referenced hill training ride.... typically 3500-6000+ of gain, with sustained 8-9% climbs for 900-1400', frequently with walls well into upper teens and even 20s. And this one after another after another, 3-6 in a row, mashing my way through these ColCo hills. The **** is awful. Awfully good, when I'm feeling strong and weigh less... but this season, pretty much just sufferfests. And, again, now that I've been riding flats almost exclusively.... It seems like it ought to be no surprise that I'd get burned out and not want to suit up for that ****.

All of this said whilst acknowledging I probably won't race on the road again this year anyway.

Seems my hip is pretty much healed up. I feel like if I am not careful, I could easily re-aggravate it.. so I am going to eeeaaassee back into the hills this week. But now that I've been riding flat hell for a couple of weeks, I also wonder just how much climbing a guy ought to do? What's too much? Is there too much, if you like to climb and live in a hilly area? Maybe there's more training value in sticking to the flats for the bulk of base miles, and just do one or two days of hill hell, out of a 6-day training schedule?

Thanks gents

-B

[Sierra]

I'd start with eliminating any use of alcohol. First things first as they say...

Are you mad?

[Sierra]

If you were primarily doing crits, why put so much emphasis on climbing? It seems to me that there are more effective ways to train for the races that you are actively participating in.

Personally, though, I don't think there is such a thing as too much climbing as long as your body cooperates and you enjoy it. I grew up amidst mountains. I have always loved climbing and would never dream of giving it up. The kinds of elevation gains you are talking about are something I am well acquainted with. But, a few years ago, work took me to north Texas, where the greatest elevation gains to be realized were in the freeway overpasses. Flat as a pancacke. Boring as hell. But, I did learn to ride against really severe wind, so the resistance training was still there for me. When I got back home, amidst the climbs once again, I found that I could still shimmy up mountainsides pretty effectively (extracurricular riding in southwestern Colorado on every opportunity I got to get out of Texas didn't hurt any!). However, I did lose the ability to descend well and almost killed myself on that first ride out!

Follow your bliss.

Disclaimer: I am not dispensing medical advice of any kind here.