@TimCusick, is this what you are thinking for tomorrow? Wasn't sure whether to do a 4min block @ max with 2min of micro intervals....or rather 6min of micro intervals:

Sorry, it is 4 minutes of 20 seconds hard and 10 seconds easy. 

@JohnOlsson  This is a tabata interval. I'm going to jump in as Tim's response above doesn't clarify the 4 min vs 6 min wording in the workout description. 

Each set consists of 6 minutes of 20 sec on and 10 sec off efforts.  This ends up being  12 x 20 sec efforts which adds up to 4 minutes of high intensity. 

enjoy!

Hey @TimCusick what trainer alternates would you recommend for this weekend's Cat 4/5 workout plan, particularly Saturday? March is in like a lion. (Here's to hoping proves the saying true and goes out like a lamb.)

What are other Peaks users doing for tomorrow? One of the trainer alternates from earlier in the winter? 

Team,  sorry did not see the reply to the tabatha intervals, just saw now.  Will clean that up.  

Alt workouts, total time = as much as you can stand on trainer in March: 

Saturday do VO2 Race Winning intervals

WU: 10-15 minutes working into Endurance (Power Z2, HR Z2, RPE 2-3) with 3 x 1-minute fast pedals to wake up legs. ------- MS: Race Winning Vo2Max Intervals. Complete 5 x 3:40 at VO2MAX (Power Z5, HR Z5 RPE 6-7) intervals. Ride endurance pace for 5 minutes, then get ready for the “Race Winning” intervals. Try for at least five efforts and up to eight in one session. Each interval begins with a 30-second sprint (15 seconds out of the saddle), and you must average 200% of your Threshold wattage in these first 30 seconds, with a peak of at least 300%. Then ride for 3 minutes and really hammer it at 100-110% of your Threshold wattage (or the best speed you think you could maintain for an hour), and finish with an out-of-the-saddle 10-second burst after the 3 minutes is over, trying to reach 200% of your threshold wattage again (or 28-30 mph). Rest for 5-6 minutes between each interval. ------- CD: 10 minutes of easy spinning in your Active Recovery (Power Z1, HR Z1, RPE <2).

Sunday do the Hour of Power:

Hey @TimCusick - I've always interpreted "rest" as Z1 – is this correct?

Rest = laying on couch all day, best rest there is.

Active Recovery = zone 1, best for flushing muscles after hard work days but not as “restful” as “rest"

Timothy Cusick
TrainingPeaks WKO4 Product Leader
tim@wko4.com

@TimCusick so when it says "Rest for 5-6 minutes between each interval" I should jump off the trainer and onto the couch?

lol....i get it you mean, rest between intervals.  There are two way to rest between, active and passive.  I always assume active, somewhere in zone 1 unless notes.  Active means turning the pedals.  For advanced stuff will use some zone 2 rest, but will note it if I do.  Now if passive, yes actually, jumping on couch would be the answer....

@TimCusick could you explain the Standing HC drills?  

It is a continuous 10 minute standing drill alternating cadence efforts from low to high.  Stand the whole time.....

Hey @TimCusick is there a way to see W prime in training peaks online or that a WKO4 only thing?

We do not display or support at any level.  Be real careful is using it, it is not all that some claim it to be.  

TimCusick said:

We do not display or support at any level.  Be real careful is using it, it is not all that some claim it to be.  

lol...yea, figured that would happen.  I will try to answer more in depth over weekend but there are some issues with these types of calculations....

Yacks needs to sign up for quarter 2....how do I accomplish this?

^same

High all!  Working on next cycle and checking to see if any major events.  I will build all weekends with race "alts" just looking to see if something big that most are doing.  Hope training is going well!

Jules said:

TimCusick said:

We do not display or support at any level.  Be real careful is using it, it is not all that some claim it to be.  

OK, so long awaited answer here, sorry slipped off my plate.  The reality of tracking the use of "W" or "AWC" is easier said then done.  Here is an honest assessment but remember, this is my opinion (but lots of science behind my opinion).

First, figuring out the burn rate of "W" (in WKO4 it is FRC) is doable but needs to be done correctly.  Go back and read the original Skiba paper that discusses how he / they did it and you will note some number fudging in the way it is done.  The reason the numbers need to be fudged is key.  In trying to model the burn rate of "W" there are three factors to be considered, there is a Fast Component, Slow Component and Overall Fatigue Component (over simplification here but still on coffee #1).  These three parts of the "burn" interact together to create the draw down of "W".  The "W" prime model does not consider all three, seems to be based on just the fast component (which is the core in this case) and the answer is not known or published.

Second (and the harder part) is to judge the recovery rate.  Here is where "individuality" creates a significant issue of measurement and modeling.  As humans that use energy, we have similar burn rates as described above but we have significantly more unique recovery rates....there lies the problem in modeling "W" or "W" prime.  The Skiba / GC solution was to use a series of odd "time" elements and base recovery rate on "recovery to fully charged (meaning after hard efforts, "W" fully recharges to max or pre-ride levels).  This was done to attempt to hide the fact that "W Prime" will go negative at some level of frequency based off (in my opinion) improper modeling standards.  This assumption lead them to introduce "factors" to edit your numbers to stop the "W" for going negative.  This alone should give you insight into the accuracy of the model.

Ok, so here is the issue.  Now one or two other software program (full disclosure to list, I am the developer and product leader of WKO4 a competitor to the softwares I am talking about) have followed suit.  Five years ago, Dr Andy Coggan introduced the idea of "Dynamic W" or "Dynamic FRC" as a possible metric in WKO4.  Others saw that idea and ran with it as best they could (read above).  WKO4 has not implemented it yet as after 5 years of testing, we still cannot get it right...even with the most robust model out there.  Why not?  The model needs to deal with all three components of the burn (that we can do really well now) and individualize the recovery and understand "how much recovery happens" (never goes back to 100%).  We are still actively working on it, just not easy to do right.

Finally, can show how to break the known models every time....just do three workouts in row (all of these somewhere in the past training plans);

1.  4 x 10 minute micro intervals with 5 minutes rest.  15 sec hard / 15 sec easy.
2.  2 x 20 minute SST with 5 min rest
3.  4 x 6 minutes of 40 sec hard, 20 sec easy with 5 min rest between.

Do them in the same few days - week and you will drive "W Prime" negative more than once while also having a day that shows you barely used any "W'.  If you train by this standard like some software suggests you should, this can lead to some major problems..

@TimCusick supplements question: the stack below is from Orica (nice that they are so transparent!)... it's for pro-tour, so I get that many of the pills/dosages are ridiculous for club riders. In the list there's a bunch of vitamins (like magnesium and B's) and—dare I say it —performance enhancers (like caffeine, creatine and amino acids such as beta-alanine). Do you have advice for racers on this subject, or do you look to a nutritional expert?

Lastly, a position question: what are the tools you use to help riders develop a more aero position on bike (apart from a wind tunnel)? 

[Edit: feel free to tell me to go fish if you feel these topics are out of scope]

Thank you @Tim for the thoughtful and detailed reply. It'll take some time to digest.

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what happens now???

Plans should be posted, did last Thursday....will check...

How do I set up my account?
i have a training peaks account do I need a code or something to upgrade to premium?
thanks y'all

yacks (and anyone else that signs up - you'll get an email from Tim's assistant welcoming you and telling you how to link your TP account to Tim as a coach) from there workouts will be added to the TP calendar. The email will come once Sean or someone else rounds up all the subscribers info and sends it off to them. Give it a day or so.

Just signed up!  Sooooper excited.