Doing repeated short bouts of exercise at very high intensity develops some physiological systems in the body. Predominantly it provides a great training stimulus for the neuromuscular system. Although not specific to endurance events, training the neuromuscular system can bring on your fitness very quickly and is still a massive benefit for endurance athletes especially early in the season or if you are unfit. This workout can be done by beginners or experienced cyclists alike because a max sprint is all about your level of effort and is likely to be different from another rider.
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.
I’ve put this series of workouts together following the guidelines from Dr Martin Gibala. In this video his concept was explained as a total of 2:30 to 4:00 minutes of total work, using intervals of between ten seconds and forty seconds, with a Work to Rest ratio (W: R) of between 1:3 and 1:9. To optimise fitness gains in minimal duration of training there was a further recommendation to keep the workouts between 30 and 40 minutes.
I sat down with a pen & paper and wrote out a series of workouts that met the requirements above. A series that worked on a 1:3 W: R ratio (from ten seconds to forty seconds), then a series with a 1:9 W: R ratio (also from ten seconds to forty seconds), then finally a series with a W: R ratio of 1:6 (you guessed it from ten seconds to forty seconds). I made sure that the total duration of the maximum work didn’t exceed four minutes. I then made some of the workouts easier by splitting the large number of reps into sets of smaller numbers. I haven’t stuck to the 40-minute limit for every workout within this series, with some workouts pushed a little above the 40-minute limit and others there is more aerobic development included. Each fortnight I’ll include a workout from this series.
Martin Gibala Intervals XI
- 10min WU Level II;
- 3 sets of:
- 4x 15sec Level V+, 90sec Level I RI,
- 5min Level II between sets;
- 10min CD Level II;
- 10min Stretching
The warm-up (WU) should be done at an intensity that is steady but not over-consuming at Level II, riding for ten minutes.
There are three main sets, with each set made up of four reps of fifteen seconds duration sprinting at max effort, followed by 90 seconds of riding at Level I for your Rest Interval (RI).
Between sets, ride at Level II for five minutes with a cadence above 90 rpm to enhance that recovery.
Conclude the ride with a cool down (CD) of ten minutes riding at Level II.
Finish with ten minutes of stretching to assist with the recovery.
Here is my data having done this workout this week:
Do this workout with the Qwik Kiwi Squad Today
Do this workout today with the Squad.
http://app.vqvelocity.com/join?a=rhs956
Sign up for a full 14-day FREE trial and get complete access to ALL On Demand and Replay workouts (as well as the opportunity to join in on Live workouts when they are being held).
Simple as 1, 2, 3
- Click this link and enter your details including FTP and weight (no cheating).
- Select “Full Access Membership” and search for & click on “Martin Gibala Intervals XI” in the workout section, then “Start this Workout.“
- Connect your trainer, power meter, and/or heart rate monitor (make sure they are disconnected from your trainer app, Zwift, Rouvey, etc… first), then come ride with us.
http://app.vqvelocity.com/join?a=rhs956
Download the Garmin (.FIT) & Zwift (.ZWO) files for this workout for FREE
Get my 8-week Faster Cyclist Training Plan with 25% off
8 weeks of training will give your FTP a significant boost. On average following this programme cyclists improve by 8% in the first month.
Some people have improved by more than 40 Watts following this programme!!!
Designed for Cyclists of ALL abilities who are wanting to improve their FTP, the primary goal of this training plan is to make you FASTER. Choose the programme based on your ability. This programme is for cyclists that are comfortable riding between 1:20 and 2 hours in duration and want three sessions per week.
When purchasing, use the discount code “web25” to claim your 25% discount.
Prior to using this plan, you should be able to ride for up to one hour, and 20 minutes comfortably.
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.