Preparing your body for the intensity that will be replicated and sustained during an event is an essential part of training. This session is great for triathletes, and road cyclists. It can also be beneficial for mountain bikers, especially for events that are about an hour in duration such as a 40km Time Trial or the bike leg of an Olympic Distance Triathlon.
Each Sunday I’ll post a Smart-Trainer Session that you can do in about 60 minutes to enhance your cycling. See a previous post about training intensity (Levels) to know how hard to work. If you are working directly with Coach Ray he will in most cases prescribe either a Power Zone or Heart Rate Zone to work within if you are training with these tools.
The inspiration for this session comes from a workout in an article by Marc Evan in the December 2007 issue of Triathlete Mag.
Tempo & Technique
- 15min WU Level II;
- 3x 5min Level III, 1min Level I RI;
- 8x 30sec SLD(L), 30sec SLD(R);
- 19min CD Level II;
- 10min Stretching
Start the workout with a fifteen-minute warm-up (WU) riding at Level II.
The main set is made up of three reps at Level III for five minutes each and ride at Level I for one minute after each rep for a Rest Interval (RI).
Next up is an eight-minute block where you conduct a Single Leg Drill (SLD), each 30 seconds change leg. A Single Leg Drill (SLD) is where you unclip one leg and pedal with that single leg whilst the other leg is stationary. Focus on pedalling in a complete circle. The unclipped leg can be resting on a chair beside your trainer, on the rear of the trainer or just hanging in mid-air away from your spinning crank/pedal.
Complete a Cool Down (CD) for nineteen minutes at Level II to round things out to an hour.
Finish with ten minutes of stretching to assist with your recovery.
Here is my data having done the workout:
If you would like further advice feel free to contact me.
I am the Head Coach & Director of Qwik Kiwi – Endurance Sports Consultant.
I specialise in assisting first-timers and recreational athletes to achieve their sporting goals. I can be contacted at coachray@coachray.nz and 021 348 729. Make sure you sign up for my informative newsletter.
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Download the Garmin (.FIT) and Zwift (.ZWO) files for this workout for FREE
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Prior to using this plan, you should be able to ride comfortably for 2 hours.
Purchase of this plan gives you access to my fortnightly coaching calls where you can ask me any training or racing-related questions.
Prior to using this plan, you should be able to ride non-stop for 60 minutes.
Purchase of this plan gives you access to my fortnightly coaching calls where you can ask me any training or racing-related questions.
When purchasing, use the discount code “web25” to claim your 25% discount.