Training
Today
Training
Today
Long, hilly, and faster than you meant to ride it.
A gran fondo is a century with climbs and a timing chip, and both of those change the training. The climbs mean sustained power matters far more than it does on a flat century; the timing chip means you will ride harder than you planned to, particularly in the first hour.
This plan runs five rides a week across twelve weeks. The weekend long ride ramps to four hours, the midweek work moves from sweet spot to threshold, and a dedicated low-cadence session every week builds the muscular side of climbing that pure interval work misses.
It assumes you have a base. If you do not, ride a base block first — sweet spot base or the winter indoor plan — and come back to this one twelve weeks out from your event.
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 | Open the block Week 1: five rides, moderate load. The low-cadence session should feel muscular, not breathless. |
Twelve weeks of focused work on top of an existing base. If you are starting from very little riding, allow twenty to twenty-four weeks in total and put a base block in front of this plan.
Climbing and pace. A gran fondo puts you on sustained climbs where power at threshold decides how long you are out there, and the timed format pushes riders harder than a social century does. This plan carries more threshold and low-cadence work as a result.
Riding at 50–60 rpm at high torque loads the muscular side of the effort rather than the cardiovascular side. It is not a substitute for threshold work, but it builds specific strength for long seated climbs where cadence drops whether you like it or not.
Training works in blocks. These plans pick up where this one leaves off.
Eight weeks aimed at climbing: low-cadence strength work, threshold intervals, VO2 max, and a timed climb simulation at both ends of the plan.
The build block that follows base: threshold intervals and VO2 max work, holding onto the aerobic volume that made them possible.
6.1 hours |
2 week | Build the base Week 2: 2×20 sweet spot and 2h30 on the weekend. Settle into the weekly rhythm. | 6.5 hours |
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3 week | First peak Week 3: three hours on the weekend and four low-cadence intervals. The biggest week of block one. | 7.9 hours |
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4 recovery | Recovery week Week 4: recovery. Five rides still, all of them easy. Volume without stress. | 5.2 hours |
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5 week | Threshold enters Week 5: threshold intervals replace one sweet spot session. This is where the climbing power starts. | 7.4 hours |
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6 week | Add VO2 Week 6: 4×8 VO2 and 3h30 on the weekend. The steepest week-to-week jump in the plan. | 8.8 hours |
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7 week | Four hours Week 7: the threshold builder, five low-cadence intervals, and a four-hour ride. Fuel it properly. | 9.3 hours |
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8 recovery | Recovery week Week 8: recovery. Two thirds done. The last block is the sharpest. | 5.2 hours |
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9 week | Peak power Week 9: 3×20 sweet spot, 4×8 VO2, four hours long. The hardest week of the plan. | 9.6 hours |
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10 week | Fatigue resistance Week 10: threshold work plus a long ride with efforts late in it. Event day is decided in the last hour. | 8.6 hours |
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11 week | Unload Week 11: volume comes down, quality stays. The group ride keeps the legs sharp without digging a hole. | 8.6 hours |
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12 recovery | Taper Week 12: short, easy, with openers. Everything this week is about arriving fresh. | 3.7 hours |
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Applying the plan schedules all 60 sessions from your chosen start date. You pick which days of the week you ride.
Start Gran Fondo Training Plan