Training
Today
Training
Today
Test on day one. Test on the last day. Watch the gap.
Most plans that promise a higher FTP never measure it. This one opens with a 20-minute test and closes with the same test on the same protocol, so the number at the end means something.
In between, the work climbs the ladder that actually moves threshold: sweet spot to build tolerance, threshold intervals to raise the ceiling itself, and VO2 max work in the second half because your threshold can only sit so far below your aerobic maximum.
It asks for four rides a week and around six hours. If you have less time, the time-crunched plan runs the same logic in three sessions.
Every session below is a real workout you can open and ride right now, with or without the plan. Applying the plan puts them on your calendar on the days you choose.
| Week | Focus and sessions | Load |
|---|---|---|
1 week | Test week Week 1: test first, then ride. Everything that follows is scaled off this number, so ride the test properly. | 4.9 hours |
It depends entirely on where you start. Riders new to structured training often see 5–10% in a first block; riders with years of consistent training may see 2–3%. The test at both ends is there so you get your own answer rather than an average.
Yes, and this plan builds the test into week one. Every target in every session is a percentage of FTP, so a stale number means eight weeks of riding at the wrong intensity.
They measure slightly different things. The ramp test is shorter and easier to repeat; the 20-minute test is closer to a real threshold effort and tends to suit riders with good endurance. What matters most is using the same protocol every time so the numbers are comparable.
Training works in blocks. These plans pick up where this one leaves off.
The build block that follows base: threshold intervals and VO2 max work, holding onto the aerobic volume that made them possible.
Eight weeks aimed at climbing: low-cadence strength work, threshold intervals, VO2 max, and a timed climb simulation at both ends of the plan.
2 week | Sweet spot into threshold Week 2: three sweet spot intervals plus a first threshold session. Threshold should feel distinctly harder. | 5.3 hours |
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3 week | First VO2 touch Week 3: 4×8 at VO2 alongside 3×20 sweet spot. The big week of the first block. | 6.1 hours |
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4 recovery | Recovery week Week 4: recovery. The second half is harder than the first — arrive at it fresh. | 3.6 hours |
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5 week | Threshold and VO2 Week 5: threshold intervals and classic 4×4 VO2. Two genuinely hard days; keep the other two easy. | 5 hours |
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6 week | Extend threshold Week 6: the full threshold builder plus 5×5 VO2. If a session falls apart, stop it — do not grind out a broken interval. | 6.1 hours |
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7 week | Peak Week 7: 3×20 sweet spot and 4×5 VO2. Last hard week — everything after this is sharpening. | 6.3 hours |
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8 recovery | Retest Week 8: easy days, leg openers, then the same 20-minute test you rode in week 1. Same protocol, same conditions. | 3.4 hours |
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Applying the plan schedules all 32 sessions from your chosen start date. You pick which days of the week you ride.
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