After three months off the bike, I am ready to get back at it. Unfortunately my fitness is nowhere near where I left off. What is the best way to reset my 4dp to something in realistic if I don’t have the hour to spend right now on doing a Full Frontal? I tried just doing workouts at 90% and still couldn’t hang with it. Any other suggestions for getting back on the trainer after a layoff?
Thanks!
Put it on level mode and ignore the power targets, reinterpret them around RPE
I’d go with Half Monty to reset; although that’s also nearly an hour you could at least scale some things very roughly from the ramp test part.
If you have time for a workout you have time for a test. Note that a test is also a workout. Full Frontal is as good a workout as almost anything, so treat it as such and get 2 for 1.
As others have said if you have time to do a workout you have time to take a test.
Half Monty is likely to give more accurate MAP and FTP values because you don’t have to guess the pacing. It won’t reset rider type but AC and NM intervals are basically full gas so it doesn’t matter if they’re set a bit high you can dial down, If MAP and FTP are set too high you’re likely to blow up and be unable to complete a workout
Yep. A test is just another good workout. I recommend doing the 7 day test prep plan which includes a HM on day 3 which sets suggested targets for the FF on day 7. That’s a very solid week of workouts that will also yield a solid 4DP result.
Great, thanks everyone.
Hey @PDXkirk ,
Welcome to the forum! Congrats on getting back into training. An option would be do a 3 or 4 week base building block or a New Routine plan either in level mode or reduce your current numbers to 80%. After that then consider doing a Half Monty then a general fitness plan. You can preview any of the plans to see which one(s) fit your needs. Happy to answer any more questions you may have. Happy training!
Cheers,
Spencer
I don’t see that offering of HM in the FF test prep week plan as a standard offering.
Do you include that on your own guidance?
Yep. Coach.Spencer.R shows how to find it. I precede any general cycling plan with the 1 week test plan. It effectively makes the general plan 1 week longer and starts it on a very solid footing of 4DP results.
It seems many view a test as something different, distracting, or daunting. I look at them as just another tough workout with the usual fitness benefits, plus it quantifies your performance.
This is the problem when people don’t read.
I never said I cannot find the plans for test prep. So @Coach.Spencer.R I am not sure why you tagged me in to something that is unrelated.
Further @Saddlesaur I asked you a direct question and your response evades answering such question, so, again, I am not sure why you replied as such.
To be clear, you stated
And I said
And as such, I asked
Day 3 on the FF plan is Tapers if I recall properly.
Unless there is another FF plan that is not a standard offering as I allude to in my original reply.
Further, suggesting to another to do two FTP tests 4 days apart when they are getting into training is IMO just bad advice. And then you have a Wahoo Coach who agrees with you as I don’t see any rebuttal to such advice.
Everything else you state is subjective as to how you see/feel things. Good for you. But likely not for others.
Sir @Dan , I think @Coach.Spencer.R was referring to the ‘Half Monty + Full Frontal’ plan, which does include HM on Day 3, followed by FF on Day 7.
HM+FF plan preview:
Ah, thank you.
And I apologise to both Coach Spencer and Saddlesaur for my directness.
Sometimes taking one’s own advice, should be taken.
I have never seen that before.
I have only ever seen FF and HM as standalone prep weeks.
However, I am still of the opinion that doing two FTP tests 4 days apart has no merit. Otherwise why does the standalone FF have Tapers 4 days out and nothing more heinous.
@Dan Generally I just do the FF week plan as I am usually on top of where my targets should be. The workouts in the FF week are supposed to be just enough to keep you from detraining but also not enough to add to your fatigue levels. So really you have Cadence Builds, Tapers, a 30 minute recovery ride and Primers and then the option to add yoga and mental toughness if desired which I definitely do. I also add a warmup before Full Frontal. The schedule seems to work for me. I just completed it last week and it went well.
We differ on that. I’m a data point of one, but I find it works very well for me, particularly having the FF targets set by the HM results. That’s particularly true for me for the FF 20 min interval. I set the gear and Level so that I can hit the target power at close to my preferred cadence of 90 rpm. I then do that interval trying to hold a slightly higher cadence for the duration, holding just above the target power and never dipping below. I’m absolutely dying by the end. I find that for me, it makes properly executing the FF easier (but def not the exertion), and the results more reliable. I also personally believe it’s great for beginners and intermediate riders who have less experience with structured training and testing. For experienced riders who are more knowledgeable, in tune with their level fitness and where they are in their plan with respect to their goals, throwing down a HM or FF may better suit their immediate needs.
I also believe that doing a structured week leading to the FF will produce a more consistent result. To that end it doesn’t necessarily need a HM in the middle of it, but for me, I see no downsides and only benefits. I don’t find it to be too much a workload and find the recovery between the HM and FF to be sufficient.
Of course the fact that SYSTM includes it as one of two 1-week test plans suggests they think it has merit in a least some situations.
