Originally Posted by
wacomme
This sounds excellent and is the type of plan I'd like to do. However, it seems that Friel and Chapple seem to emphasize more level 1-2 type of riding for base. While I feel I can handle this training schedule, is it too much (fast) too soon? Should I do longer and slower rides, and not just on weekends?
probably not. be disciplined about keeping your Ws in a narrow target range on the weekday stuff, consider starting around 80% ftp and evaluating how your body responds, then adjust upward or downward from there.
if you have time for longer rides during weekdays, go for it.
dont worry about "slower" focus on "steady".
do some trial and error to figure out what your body can handle such that the last workout of the week should be doable.
i like incorporating a 3 weeks "on", 1 week "recovery" program, it forces a rest as it's scheduled and results in a steady progressive ctl build.
lastly, i'm convinced that for training, THAT you do is more important than WHAT you do.
it's silly how much work it takes just to suck as an amateur bicycle racer.