Originally Posted by
mcjimbosandwich
you are absolutely right, but you probably also have years of base to back up the 3-4 days of hard workouts. OP, since you are just starting, building base is what you need, and you probably won't be able to do the stuff (3-4 hard workouts/week) that merlin could. and while you are building base, don't ever go into threshold, and heck, try not even get into low tempo as that might erode your base.
Very good advice but if you're truly training for the season's races then you won't have time. after season though invest a good 6 weeks of riding well below threshold.
For now, make sure your "easy" days really are easy - no more than 80% of your
Anaerobic Threshold: able to breath through your nose and comfortably carry on a long conversation, you're holding back. FWIW I never really wear my HR monitor on my hard days, I always use it on my easy days.