I’d love to listen to an episode about TT. Perhaps speaking to any limitations attributed to a lower VO2 and the balance of sustained efforts whilst working on raising VO2. Can that work be done concurrently? Or should you look to focus on one specific metabolic factor at a time?
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That would be a great topic to discuss in depth! You can balance the two aspects together, as part of riding at higher intensities for prolonged periods is that you will likely hit your VO2max, the maximal rate of oxygen you can consume, even if not working at MAP.
The workouts designed to boost your MAP/VO2max will also help with TT performance and capacity to work at a higher power for longer. Some of it is a psychological aspect of learning to deal with the associated pain of sustaining an effort for that long and understanding what power you can sustain.
However one reason why it can be good to split the training focus is that it means that you can change the training stimulus after specific blocks of training. This can help elicit greater overall training benefits as your body is having to adapt to differing training stimulus rather than doing the same overall stimulus, and experiencing potentially a little bit of stagnation over time in terms of gains.
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Thank you for that. What are the advantages of splitting the blocks from MAP/ VO2 and long duration? That’s probably more the heart of my question. Should I spilt it or not? I can work for 15-20 minutes around “VO2” effort. However that doesn’t do much for my TT when I’m gassed 10 minutes in. But there’s not point being really efficient with a 200W FTP ceiling right? Or should I do cycles? Is there a way I can analyse recorded data to see which is eliciting the best results?
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Do you do a lot of TTs @Cody? It would be great to have a podcast on TTs. I’ve found the plans in SYSTM great for getting ready this season, doing All Purpose then TT specific (both with strength). Biggest issue I found last season was that too many weekend TTs cut back on the longer aerobic sessions and halted progress. This year I started from a much lower point but am finishing this season stronger than the last (25 mile PB 2 weeks ago!). This year I’ve done all my indoor workouts on the TT bike and any outdoor training on the road bike which I think has worked well.
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VO2/MAP effort shouldn’t be sustainable for 15-20min so possibly numbers need adjusting. Do you feel gassed at 10min in the TT because it’s on the tt bike? As @TTDragon mentioned, training on the tt bike can make a big difference there.
As for your question, splitting the two is often a good way to focus on each aspect. I tend to recommend doing MAP building blocks or focussed 12 week plan, then moving to FTP building blocks or focussed 12 week plan. The Building Blocks allow you to do a short block targeting one area at a time which can be helpful and a bit easier to schedule in around a busy schedule
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@TTDragon I only have a TT bike for triathlon so any riding I do, indoor or out is on it with as much time as possible in the aero bars. I haven’t completed an outdoor TT stand alone. Only as part of triathlon block training or races. I appreciate the input. Perhaps I’ll look to compete more in TT’s.
@Coach.Andy.T thank you. I should have been clearer. In “tool shed” I accumulated an approximate 18minutes at “VO2” heart rate, which was about high threshold power with my new HM power zones. I was destroyed after it… so it felt very much like a VO2 session. I’ve also accumulated 13 minutes in “revolver is easy” at a similar effort. I’m 7 weeks into my “MAP” block so very much looking forward to a change and seeing what results I can get out of the next “FTP” block. I appreciate the very good information. I’ll definitely stick to the block idea.
This block based approach is an area where I really like the Full Frontal test and think it shows big value over other test methods.
Full frontal will identify when MAP is low relative to FTP and some time needs to be spent raising the ceiling. Typically when my results show this i’ll do one workout per week dedicated to MAP (AVDP for example) and one workout with a MAP/FTP split focus.
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Yes, I reached my best condition ever in 2021 using that method.
Unfortunately i then didnt ride all winter and found myself starting over from scratch for 2022, but thats another story 
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